Remanence
by speeddemon56
Summary: Destiny is changed, but not all things will turn up roses. From the ashes left at the Battle of Beacon a new path will be formed and time will tell the changes in the story of the Invincible Girl and a Simple Soul. Canon Divergence, starts in the volume 3 Finale, moving onwards from there
1. Chapter 1 - Arc's Descent

Chapter 1: Arc's Descent

Beacon was falling and Jaune couldn't help but feel like it was his fault. He might not have been the perfect hero, he knew he had a lot of room to improve, but he had been improving. He had been training, working day in and out to improve himself, and with Pyrrha's help he had been in improving. He had even managed to unlock his semblance during the Breach, when Ren had been injured by the Deathstalker that came through. His Semblance had let him heal Ren while team CVFY took down the giant Grimm. Upon further experimentation he found he could do more than just heal, he could boost people's aura and even semblances, by giving some of his own.

He didn't cause the Grimm to start attacking, or the Atlesian robots to turn on them, or the giant dragon Grimm to burst out of the mountain… but he didn't get how badly Pyrrha was doing, and he must have said exactly the wrong thing, cause she just got even more freaked out. Ruby said what happened wasn't Pyrrha's fault, and he agreed, she had no way of knowing that Penny was a robot, would never mean to k- to do anything like that. But would it have turned out the same way if he had known the right thing to say?

No matter what though, under the tunnels was his fault. He was confused, wondering what on Remnant Ozpin was doing and why he was putting his partner in something that seemed out the laboratory of a mad scientist from one of his comic books, but he was supposed to guard the entrance. And he didn't, he failed and now that other girl was dead, and Cinder had powered up? She seemed way stronger, so much so that Ozpin sent them out of the way.

As much as that stung, he should still try to fulfill the mission Professor Ozpin gave him. "C'mon, I know I have Glynda's number here somewhere" Jaune mutters to himself as he opens up his scroll. Looking over at Pyrrha he asks "Pyrrha, what was all of that?"

She pauses for a moment, and before she can answer they see Cinder fly up to the top of the tower. Ozpin doesn't appear to be close behind or engaging her in any way at all. "But, Ozpin…" Ozpin was supposed to be one of the greatest huntsmen of all time, the youngest hunter ever made headmaster, if even he couldn't beat her then how could anyone?

Pyrrha's face turned even more grim as she turned to jaune and said "There's no time, go get to Vale, get some help."

Jaune feared what she was thinking but had to ask "What are you going to do?" Pyrrha turned her gaze up to the top of the tower, giving Jaune all the answer he needed. "No, Pyrrha you can't, you saw how powerful she is. I won't let you do this, not-" He found himself cut off by Pyrrha suddenly kissing him. It was shocking, yet wonderful, he never would have imagined how soft her lips felt. He was so distracted that he almost didn't notice when they broke apart what Pyrrha was about to do.

"I'm sorry" she said right before pushing him towards a nearby locker. Jaune only just managed to trigger his shield, causing it to expand outward and block him from being thrown into the locker. Jaune had learned a bit from the pranks Cardin had pulled on him before and figured he could use the shield jam to block getting pushed into a locker again, he just never expected that Pyrrha would be the one doing the pushing.

"Wait, you can't go fighting her! Not on your own." Jaune shouts out trying to get her to stop before she fully pushes him in. He knows it wouldn't be hard for her to force him in, but she stops at his words.

Shaking her head, she says "I don't have time to wait for Glynda and the others to get here. That woman must be drained from fighting Ozpin, this is the best chance I'll get."

"I'll send out a message to everyone, but I'm saying you should take me along as well."

"I can't, you aren't strong enough and if-" Jaune cuts off her next words.

"If I'm not strong enough now then when will I be? This is the moment I've- we've been training for. I know I'm not as strong as you, but I can support you and my semblance can boost you." Seeing Pyrrha still unsure he adds "Look, if we don't have much time then we should just go together rather than arguing, right?" He finishes sending out a group message letting anyone else at school know where they are. He has no idea if any of them will be able to make it to them with all the Grimm swarming around, but it didn't hurt to send the message out.

Pyrrha hesitates for a half second more before taking his hand and running toward the elevator with a shaky smile on her lips. She's not happy about the situation, but she seems to be doing a bit better with Jaune there, and if he can help her out then he's done good.

When they come up to the elevator, they see the person sized hole going through the top and bottom of it. "Oh man, how are we supposed to get up now?" Pyrrha raises an eyebrow at him.

"I was thinking of using my semblance." Jaune flushes with embarrassment having forgotten she could use it like that. He grabs onto her hand and gives her a quick boost from his aura, letting Pyrrha lifts the elevator up to the top in a couple seconds. Jaune's still a little off balance from how quickly they skyrocketed upward but manages to roll out of the elevator alongside Pyrrha, though Pyrrha also threw her weapons at Cinder as she left. When he gets up fully, he sees Cinder standing in Ozpin's office, as if she owned the place. She dodged or blocked Pyrrha's first attacks, but Pyrrha's back on her in an instant, her thrown weapons drawn back to her with Polarity. Cinder lifts herself off the ground, flying now, which prevents her from being thrown off balance when the largest Grimm Jaune has ever seen or heard of climbs up the outside the tower and roars, its draconic masked head looking in through, and obscuring most view out of, the windows. The sound itself seems to shake the floor, Pyrrha shifting with it to attack Cinder from the side and dodge her flame blasts. Jaune stumbles over, focusing on keeping his shield up, knowing that he doesn't really have enough balance to try and make an attack right now.

Cinder blocks a shield strike from Pyrrha, moving to blast her with another burst of fire, which Jaune intercepts placing his shield in between them. The heat is sweltering, but his shield and aura are holding out. Jaune's sword arm is held loosely out behind him, reaching towards Pyrrha. Pyrrha moves to grab his hand, but Cinder just flies up higher, cutting of her blast of flame towards Jaune and sending an even stronger one towards Pyrrha. It's a testament to her skill that she manages to roll herself up behind her shield and have it take the majority of the blast, but the force from it still sends her skidding back, away from Jaune. Cinder's eyes actually seem to show some annoyance for once, an appreciated change from the arrogance she's otherwise been displaying, but not one that Jaune can fully appreciate as she starts beating into him.

Jaune brings his arm forward to swing his sword at Cinder, planting his feet perfectly, just like Pyrrha's taught him, but it's not enough. Cinder deflects it to the side with her hand and an application of Aura, before whipping that hand back with a newly conjured sword of glass in her hand. His shield rises to block it in a way that he suspects wouldn't be possible without Pyrrha. It stops the sword from taking his head, the glass shattering on the shield. It hangs suspended in the air for a split second before all the shards fly towards him with a twist of her hand. Jaune brings his shield down back down to block most of it, but several pieces still clip his Aura and take small chunks off it.

Before she can move in further, Pyrrha's charging back in, jumping over Jaune to get at Cinder. Cinder backs away from the strike, throwing out blasts of flame herself, that Pyrrha spins around to avoid. Jaune can't dodge them as agile as Pyrrha can, but blocks most of them, save for one that strikes a little too close to his feet and knocks him down. Pyrrha's strikes can't get past Cinder's defence and Jaune begins to wonder just how much he thought he could do in this fight, barely able to keep up with the movements. Pyrrha turns Akuo into rifle mode to let off a shot that guides her back to Jaune, but he's still trying to get up. She turns around wondering where he is and offering a hand to pull him, which Jaune moves to grab while focusing on trying to boost her Aura, to give her the edge she needs to beat Cinder.

Cinder must have seen that coming, as the moment before his hand reaches Pyrrha's, Cinder has spun her away, grabbing the rifle she still held out and twirling with Pyrrha almost as if they were at a dance, not a combat. Jaune could almost see their moves as a dance with how swift, graceful, and fluid they are, if it were not for the very real threat of death, Jaune could almost let himself be entranced by their moves. He rushes forward but finds the fight moved on to halfway around the room in an instant as Cinder kicks Pyrrha away. Pyrrha returns the favour, sliding under a blast of fire and striking at her with Akuo in sword form. Cinder deftly blocks the shot only for Pyrrha to let the sword go flying up, rotating around slightly and changing into spear form with Pyrrha's Polarity. All of that only serves as a distraction to let Pyrrha punch Cinder, and from there flow into a sweeping throw, sending Cinder hurtling towards Jaune.

Jaune's blade is raised and ready to strike down where Cinder lands, but only hits the air as Cinder flies away from him even while prone. Cinder slides around and over Jaune pushing his back down even further after his strike to glide over, Pyrrha's shield sent rocketing towards her and then kicked away just as fast. Cinder draws and fires a bow of glass at Pyrrha, halting her movement forward momentarily as she blocks. Jaune, having recovered in the time it took her to do so, is standing again and swinging his sword towards her. Cinder drops the bow and just steps inside his strike range as she turns to meet him. Jaune tries his best to shift backwards and turn the slash into something useful, but Cinder blocks it before grabbing his head. "Foolish" is all she says before engulfing his head in flames and sending him crashing through Ozpin's desk and into the one of the walls.

His vision is blurry and more than a little disoriented, he's sure that almost anyone else would have been killed by that blast, and even he had most of his Aura taken out by it. When he focuses again, he can see that Pyrrha is pressing Cinder against the ground, her spear inching closer to Cinder's neck as she tries to hold it off. Jaune can also see behind her that the Wyvern is flying in at a rapid pace, on a direct collision course with the tower. "Pyrrha, look out!" Jaune cries, which does get her to notice the giant Grimm, but the split second of taking her eyes off of Cinder lets her take a hand away from the spear and uses it to blast Pyrrha into the ceiling with a gout of flame. "Pyrrha!" Jaune shouts as he stands up and tries to move towards her. His efforts are stopped by the Wyvern smashing into the tower, shattering all the glass and breaking off most of the ceiling, sending it off the side or crashing down on the floor. Jaune shields himself against the glass and debris, kneeling behind his shield as the force pushes him against the wall.

Jaune picks himself up as Pyrrha manages to pick up on of the largest gears that was going over the edge and surfs it back into battle, jumping off of it as it goes over the top of the tower and letting in continue to fly into the Wyvern. The dust has mostly cleared and the two of them see Cinder floating in the air again. Pyrrha calls her weapons back to her, but before they can arrive Cinder is charging her again. Jaune leaps in the way again, this time managing to hold her off for a few seconds as Pyrrha rolls around calls her weapons to her. Cinder makes a pair of identical curved glass swords and sends a flurry of blows at them both. Jaune and Pyrrha manage to counter every strike, deflect every slash and push her back with their own. Pyrrha throws her shield at Cinder, a move which she just manages to duck under, which only sets up Jaune's shield bash. Cinder spins around from it raising her blades just in time to catch the synchronised sword slash Pyrrha and Jaune send at Cinder. He knows the battle's been tough running him ragged after what can't have been more than a minute or two, but now that Cinder can't keep them apart anymore, their teamwork can beat her.

As they press Cinder backwards with their swords, Pyrrha's shield comes sweeping back to take out Cinder's legs. She falls backwards, pushed down by the force of their blows and sent tumbling away. Before she can try to fly away or even pick herself up again Pyrrha launches the gears that had scattered down around them at her, burying Cinder under them.

Jaune's thoughts on Cinder being unable to match their teamwork are cut short by a piercing shriek from the Wyvern, reminding him of her 'partner' in this fight and how it's getting closer to the tower again. Pyrrha grabs his hand and says "Jaune" her tone instantly conveying what she wants. Jaune starts using Aura Amplification, letting Pyrrha draw on more metal with her Polarity than ever before. Cinder blasts her way out of the gears only to stumble as she feels the rumbling beneath her feet. She starts flying, upwards, and then further upwards and backwards to get out of the way of the rising tower as Pyrrha starts lifting it out of the ground. Only half of it rises up, accompanied by a cacophony of screeching and crashing as the metal supports tear into the air, some of the stone staying attached to the partial tower, other chunks falling off as it rises, the flips into the air, dropping towards the Wyvern and Cinder.

Pyrrha drops her shield underneath her and uses it to start guiding them back down, Jaune having dropped his Aura Amplification after being so drained from boosting the tower throw. He's surprised that Pyrrha even has enough left to stop them from falling to their deaths after that. "Pyrrha, that was amazing!" Jaune shouts over the wind as he sees the tower falling on the Wyvern. The Wyvern's trying to roll out of the way, unable to stop it's momentum in time to avoid the tower, now just trying to lessen the impact and cushion the blow with one of it's wings. Pyrrha blushes slightly, from the compliment or only just now realizing how close she's been holding Jaune to her, Jaune can't tell.

Pyrrha says "Thank you-" the rest of the words not registering in Jaune's mind as he sees Cinder flying towards them, having flown straight through the tower, bursting through one of the windows to reach them, hatred visible on her face. Jaune sees the blades moving to descend upon Pyrrha and pushes her out of the way. Pyrrha tumbles off of her shield as the blades strike into him, breaking through his Aura. He sees Pyrrha tumbling off into the void and Cinder about to blast her, but his worries are assuaged when a red streak comes flying off the side of the tower and grabs her out of the way. Jaune's confident that Ruby's got Pyrrha, but there's no one to get him as he falls helpless through the air, his crash into the ground quickly followed by the titanic, earth-shaking crush of the tower and giant Grimm falling down beside him.

Jaune can hardly believe that he can open his eyes at first, not that he can see much through the dust and rubble falling all around. He thinks it must be a miracle that he was able to survive it, but when he tries to move to get up, he finds that he can't. He looks up and finds that his arms and legs just aren't moving, even though he's trying to get them to move. It could just be shock or exhaustion, but the lack of feeling he's getting from his limbs is worrying. He can't move, but his voice isn't broken, and he calls out "Ruby, Pyrrha! I'm over here!" He shouts out for them a few more times before he sees someone walking towards him through the dust. "Thank you, I'm not able to move but-" he cuts off his words as he sees that gait and realizes who it is. "No, no, no, no" he chants as the dust clears and his fears are confirmed and Cinder walks through to see him, her grin smile showing a hint of pity that enrages him further than any amount of cruelty or malice could.

"You shouldn't have been here. This power wasn't promised to you, what reason did you have to try and interfere? It's only brought you ruin."

Jaune spits out "I don't care about your power, I'm here to take you out because you killed Ozpin and attacked us

"Just another sacrifice Ozpin has forced on the world. I think I can somewhat understand Hazel now. You say you don't care about it, but this power is what brought me greatness, what will take me farther than you can imagine. And why I will live and you will die, achieving nothing." He can see that the rubble has stopped falling and the Wyvern is laying motionless under the largest chunk of the tower, black specks flaking off into the air from where it's pinned.

Jaune glares at her "Like-" he coughs up a bit before continuing "Like you have any right to say that, after everything you, you caused. I did help, your dragon is dead because of my help, and even if I'm not 'the hero' I can help fight against the darkness, support others who are doing it. That's all I need." He hears some sounds like scratching on chalkboard, but he can't figure what's causing them, or if it's just his head ringing about.

He sees Ruby and Pyrrha come running towards him, which Cinder just smirks at. They move to attack her, when a bunch of Beowolves and Ursa come burst through the walls of the tower, the Wyvern suddenly moving again, trying to shift its way out from under the tower. Jaune realizes that it wasn't ever dead, just faking it through the Grimm it could spawn, then making more of them to help break apart the tower and get at anyone trying to get too close.

Ruby and Pyrrha are holding off well against the Grimm. Even tired, Pyrrha's technique is impeccable and Ruby's speed helps rip through the weaker Grimm, but they don't see the Wyvern's tail flicked around to start sending in more spawn at them from behind. Jaune yells out as loud as he can "Watch out, it's making Grimm behind you too!" The girls turn around and start fighting off both of them, not surprised thanks to Jaune's warning, but not able to make any headway having to fight off the additional Grimm. Weiss' arrival changes things though, she slices through the Grimm and locks several in a wall of ice.

At the grin on his face Cinder just calmly states "Your actions have changed nothing." She turns away and fires her bow at Ruby and Pyrrha as they try to move closer. "All your support does is draw in more lambs to the slaughter, as they try and help you." Cinder's flame blasts knock Pyrrha off her feet and break her Aura, Ruby rushing to the side to get her out of the way of further shots. Ruby keeps on trying to move forward but has to zig zag around the fire and a glass all while carrying Pyrrha. "But you can relax now, they will no longer have to fear for your safety." As she talks and fights Ruby, she kicks a large stake of wood off a piece of rubble nearby, the piece flipping up into her hands where she casually ignites it. "Not that the end of your life will guarantee their own, as I said you are just another pointless sacrifice." The wood is launched from her hands, spearing through his heart. He hears someone else shout "NO!" before his last sight is filled with a bright silver light, that finally fades to white.

* * *

A/N: **The idea around this fic is that Jaune unlocks his semblance earlier than in canon* which leads him to try and help in the battle against Cinder w/ Pyrrha. The end result is that he gets killed instead of her. Everything else flows as a consequence from there**. I'm fully caught up with volume 6 and I'll try to keep everything properly following canon, but there is the chance that at some point with what I have planned I'll have to mark this as a complete AU. If a scene from canon is completely not mentioned (at least for volume 4 and some of volume 5) assume it happened normally off screen. A lot of those scenes involved other characters and/or would be minimally impacted by any divergences. I want to explore how things could go differently not novelize the volumes after 3. if you haven't seen those volumes yet then certain points are going to be confusing, especially in the later chapters where it's assumed that you've followed the stories of characters that aren't Ruby and Pyrrha and thus know what's going on.**

**This is my first Fanfiction and if you have any criticism, want to discuss the story or just mention what you liked, please leave a review. I hope you enjoy this story.**

*** look just assume that Emerald or Neo messed with his senses/misdirected him away from Mercury so he couldn't offer to heal him before PvP. It's not like he actually had a lot of time for that anyways with other team duties and his talk with Pyrrha that happened in between those fights**

**** there isn't any direct correlation between Jaune's death and the modifications Ruby makes to her weapon in chapter 3, but I put it in because 1) it helps make the fight scene's have more variation than they would in canon and 2) because I think it's a cool concept that I haven't really seen used in a lot of rwby stories**


	2. Chapter 2 - Cold

Chapter 2 Cold

It was cold in Vale, Pyrrha had determined. It shouldn't be cold, it wasn't like Atlas, she had competed there twice. Mistral wasn't really warmer than Vale, and she'd been here for months, it didn't feel cold then. But it did now, now that-

She can't really think about that anymore, so she forcibly thinks about something else. About the Grimm still roaming around. No one is calling on the huntresses in training after the main Battle of Beacon, except for her. Her fame is apparently unescapable even now. Or is that infamy now? She doesn't feel too bitter about being put to work, the 'proper authorities' are at least pretending to hold her to student level, just ordering her to 'help with the reconstruction process'. She wasn't sure how much she could trust them after what Ozpin had revealed, and also… she wondered how much they blamed her for everything that happened. They may have surprised her, hidden things from her and the rest of the student body, but if she had just agreed to becoming the Fall Maiden right away, maybe she could have stopped all of this.

With those thoughts not leading to much of anywhere better, Pyrrha just decided to focus on the Polarity she was using to fix up the buildings in downtown Vale. Her Semblance may not have been as versatile as Glynda's, but it could still help with fixing some of the damages done. The Grimm attacks weren't incredibly dangerous around where she was assigned, the most dangerous ones more around the outskirts of the city, but she made sure to keep an eye out just in case any of them managed to sneak up on her. The Grimm always attack whatever site she was sent to. Is it because of her own negativity or just the general situation? She hardly owns a monopoly on negative feelings, but it's true that her mood hasn't really improved since getting here. There are still a lot of Grimm roaming around from the first attack, even with Ruby blasting apart that Wyvern. Pyrrha recognized she was attracting Grimm, but she could fight most of the ones here off with no problem and her Semblance could be enough of a help to make up for it. Not many other students would have Semblances that could help out with this. A lot of them had Semblances like Nora's, which could be useful, but wouldn't help here, and Ren's Semblance was better used keeping the camps safe. Most other students had left by this point, going back to their respective Kingdoms, taken back home by their parents, or fled elsewhere. The few remaining like the rest of her team were ostensibly guarding the civilians, but they also had adult Hunters there as well, which felt like a waste.

Doing this work made it pretty obvious to anyone and everyone what her Semblance was, but Pyrrha wasn't really worried about that. She didn't plan on going back into the tournament scene or anything like that, and Cinder was what was really important. That woman already knew what Pyrrha's semblance was, that seemed to be how she tricked her, how she was beaten. Well, not how she was beaten, Maiden powers just made her too powerful, and Pyrrha had grown overconfident, thought she couldn't be beat. Bought into her own 'Invincible Girl' press. She had thought that with- she had used her Polarity to greater effect than she ever had before, but it wasn't enough to beat Cinder. Using it here, to build and repair things was a good practice for trying to use it more. She had used it effectively in the battle, but she had still been a little slow in manipulating objects bigger than her shield, and now she couldn't count on Jau- He was gone, foreve- she shouldn't have tried in the first place.

She directed one of the beams over to the side to crush the Beowolf that was trying to sneak up on her. No hand motion being used made it more difficult to control, but it was a fairly simple movement, and the Beowolf was a young one. Very inexperienced in its ambush approach, lightly armored, and entirely unable to dodge. There were two more following behind it that attempted to charge after seeing the first one get crushed. Even more inexperienced then, moving straight at her together rather than circling around. She raised the beam back up and spun it around to swing and sweep behind her. The motion was jerkier than she intended, and she had to raise her hand to control it from hitting one of the few undamaged buildings beside the one she was working on. It cost her a second and she had to keep on relying on giving it a general direction with her hand to keep it stable. The Grimm weren't able to capitalize on that second lost and still got battered by the beam, each one broken apart and fading away.

She sighed as she moved the beam back into place. Pyrrha wasn't sure why she needed to use her hands, but it did help to direct her magnetism, even if it was just a slight gesture in that direction. It was a weakness, something that she couldn't always fit into her motions as she fought. Every millisecond mattered in a fight, and she was done accepting where she was. She was a good fighter, great fighter even by her own high standards, but there was always a way to be better. Pyrrha had been fine just coasting in skill thinking it was fine to be the 'Invincible Girl' and wanting to focus on other things, like helping make others stronger. She was pretty sure that she didn't have that title anymore and having tasted defeat she wished she could have it back, as much as she had disliked it before. It would almost be funny if it weren't so sad.

One of the workers bumped into her and she said "I'm Sorry." She wasn't sorry, but the words were an instinct, so she said them automatically. Her face didn't show any remorse, and Pyrrha thought there must be far more anger there than she had thought, because the man turned as if to shout at her, but just stood there with his jaw hanging open for a moment before grunting and shuffling off as fast as he could.

Pyrrha just shrugged and got back to work setting up the building, the workers using what fire Dust was left to help fix things up. Roman's thefts combined with the amount the Huntsmen and Huntresses were needing to protect Vale had left precious little dust elsewhere. Usually this would just mean the prices increasing drastically, which would be unpleasant, but Vale could handle that. Atlas, after their 'brilliant' intervention nearly got everyone killed by the very army they brought in had closed off boarders. No SchneeTM Dust would be coming through to them and it was tough enough to get from other countries, worried as they were about similar attacks.

Today seemed to have been a bust on the whole 'try to have good thoughts' plan that Dr. Nora had prescribed. That thought at least brought a smile to her face, which lasted the fifteen minutes left until their shift was done.

Pyrrha stretched a bit as the other workers packed up their tools. None of them looked at her, but a few mumbled "thank you" as the past her by, which was something. Looking around she could see that the buildings were actually getting fixed at a decent rate here, considering that Grimm were still sporadically wandering around. A lot the projects she had been helping with now had the walls and roofs put on or partially constructed, and it was looking like regular people could start moving back soon, without the need for Hunters to be walking around, sitting on rooftops with sniper rifles to pick off the Grimm.

As Pyrrha looked around the town her gaze was inevitably brought up to the airships heading back and forth between the school and Vale. Beacon seemed to have slightly more Grimm than Vale, which was a little odd given the lack of people to generate negative emotions there. It had also been hit the hardest, part of which had been her fault when she took down the tower to attack the Wyvern. Beacon might take years to recover, but the huntresses and huntsmen seemed to think it was a worthy task, so they'd do it.

It was a rare sunny day today, something Pyrrha was trying her best to appreciate. She could blame any cold she was feeling on the wind, which was not all that brisk considering it was almost winter. Pyrrha walked through the city until coming to a crossroads. She could go left and head back to camp or go right and find the training ground she liked to use. 'Training ground' in this case mostly just being a clearing in the forest nearby that she could practice her maneuvers in. Whenever the Grimm would wander by it just gave her moving targets and helped clear away a few more Grimm from the area. Still, Nora and Ren might want to see her again before she set off where she technically wasn't supposed to go, on account of danger. Weighing the options once more in her head Pyrrha decided that between going left to camp, right to train, or straight ahead to… Qrow?

Blinking her eyes, she wondered how she could have missed the man that she would have sworn wasn't standing there a second ago. Pyrrha wasn't sure about going off to train on her own if her environmental awareness was that bad, but she thought she could at least say hi to Qrow before talking to Nora and Ren.

"Hello again" Pyrrha says to Qrow. The older hunter finishes taking a sip from his flask before turning around to greet her in return. His posture is as poor as ever and he has the same frown on his face that he did the first time they met. The only thing that might have changed is that he looks a little bit more tired now, though no less alert for it.

"Well, well, looks like you've been keeping busy. I haven't been able to check in on you kids since everything went to shit."

He's taking another swig from his flask as Pyrrha says "I'm sure you've been busy with getting the city back in order and coordinating how to reclaim Beacon. If I may ask, why are the hunters trying to do that? Usually after a settlement or structure falls, effort is put into rebuilding elsewhere, so why try to retake Beacon? I did wreck it pretty badly" she admits, still feeling a little bad about the destruction she caused to the CCT tower. She and everyone else haven't been able to get in contact with anyone by scroll because of it.

"Yeah, barely had time to stop by to talk with Ruby and Yang a couple months ago. Ever since Oz died, I've been forced to help deal with a bunch of that 'leadership' stuff. I don't envy Glynda though, she's the one who's really keeping things running here. Peter and Bartholomew are helping her out though, so she should be fine when I bounce."

Pyrrha brightens up at hearing that "They're alive? That's so good to hear. Last we saw of them they were fighting all the Grimm at the Vytal stadium." Pyrrha pauses for a moment trying to figure out a way to ask about Yang's arm but finds it too awkward to say anything before giving up on that and beginning to ask him a question. "Um, Mr. Qrow or is it Rose or-"

"Just call me Qrow, no need for formalities. Mr. Branwen if you absolutely must."

"Right, Qrow, if you're leaving and they need more hunters and huntresses then maybe I could step up and…" Her words trail off at the sight of his raised hand.

"Hold up Wyvern Wrecker-" This time Pyrrha's the one to interrupt Qrow.

"Wyvern Wrecker?" She asks.

"That's the name people are giving you, on account of you taking down the giant beast."

Pyrrha is fairly certain that it isn't the only title people are using for her but doesn't see any point in bringing anything about that up. Qrow doesn't seem like the type to lend a sympathetic ear to people hating her for what she did, especially when even she can't forgive herself. "I don't understand, I'm not the one that killed it though."

"Yeah, but we're trying to keep Ruby's involvement on the down low and you already had a reputation to support it. Any who, I know you're eager to get back in there kid, but just wait, your time will come. Sooner than you think, take it from a pro. Just focus on resting up for now."

Pyrrha can't help but sigh at that. She turns left to leave before mustering up to say "You were right."

"Huh? I mean, of course I was. Now, what was it that I was right about again?"

"You said that I was the one pulling my team along. At the time, I didn't believe you, but I see better now." It's harsh and hard to say even now, but it's true. If she had believed it at the time, then maybe Jaune would still be alive. She tries to blink back the tears that are starting to form in her eyes as she feels a hand pat her shoulder.

"Tough lesson to learn. I'm sorry." She feels the hand leave her shoulder and waits a few seconds to regain composure before turning around, but when she does so she can't find him, just a few feathers floating down. Pyrrha wonders briefly if Ruby's semblance is actually a family one, but with a different tell from Qrow's, before pushing the idle thought aside for later and going to talk to her team.

The camp is a crowded place, tents strewn all about with a few hastily constructed lookout posts erected around the perimeter. Most of the tents are large, able to hold almost a hundred people, made of a thick tear resistant material that keeps everyone safe from the elements. They have some basic amenities set up, and it's well protected but the place doesn't have much going for it by way of attractions. Still, Pyrrha can see a couple people dancing around entertaining some kids and others playing games outside or just enjoying the nice weather. It's nice to see humanity able to pull through these dark times, and even nicer to know that this isn't for everyone, just for the people that have nowhere else to go at the moment. The majority of the people are in the section of the city that has well and been reclaimed, which from what Pyrrha's seen is even more cramped than over here, but some people are actually going back to their everyday lives now.

Pyrrha opened the tent flap and was suddenly assailed by a Nora right in front of her. It was something she'd have thought she was used to by now, but suddenly having a Nora in your face could still through her off. She stumbled backwards before catching herself and saying "Nora, what-"

Before she can say anything else Nora is off, talking a thousand miles a minute. "Pyrrha, Pyrrha, we've got maaaiil" Nora sing-songs as she pulls Pyrrha back inside the tent and to where Ren is sitting down. Pyrrha distractedly answers the questions Nora gives her about work while looking over at Ren. He's smiling a bit and waves over at Pyrrha, holding a letter from Ruby addressed to the three of them in his hands.

Pyrrha blinks in surprise as Nora finally manages to lead her to Ren, past the other people standing around, Pyrrha only having to duck a few times to avoid bumping into someone else. She isn't sure why she's surprised, even without their scrolls, it's not like there hasn't been communication going on from outside the city and Ruby is there friend. She guesses that it's because this is the first time any of their 'friends' have reached out to them, before dropping that and berating herself for not considering the conditions and places they must be in, physically, mentally, or both.

Pyrrha takes a seat on one side of Ren while Nora flops down on the other side of him looking eager "Open it Ren, open it. We've been waiting forever for Pyrrha to get back so open it now and we can all find out what she said!" Ren opens it up, seeming put upon, but Pyrrha can tell he's almost as eager as Nora was, even if he's better at containing his excitement. She's sorry that they were delayed because of her work, but glad that they waited for her and that she decided to go back to camp right after talking to Qrow.

Ren opens the letter and all three of them begin reading 'Hi, Nora, Ren, and Pyrrha how are you guys doing? I've been getting back up to strength after the tower thing, but I'm feeling pretty much fully better now. Things have been quiet here, which is good. It's been good to see Dad again, he's been around way more now, which is kinda nice, but also kinda crowding? Yang… she's just sitting there, barely getting up. Aside from her arm she's recovered but I don't think she'll be coming with me when I go.'

Pyrrha's surprised at that, she didn't know where Ruby would be planning on going and reading further, she found the surprising answer. 'I'm heading to Mistral in a couple weeks. Qrow mentioned that the people behind the attack here might be found there. If you guys want to join me, then meet me outside my house on the 3rd. We can travel across the kingdoms and stop the people who did this. I'll understand if you guys can't or don't want to go, just send any letters Haven, I'll get them there. If not, I'll see you in two weeks'

A flurry of thoughts ran around in Pyrrha's head at the letter. How could she not want a chance to strike back at the woman who murdered Jaune, at the people who attacked Beacon? Ruby might have just been being polite, not just assuming they would join and give them another way to contact her. After turning over to see Ren and Nora's eager and determined faces, she understood a bit more clearly, even wishing that she had been the only one to read the letter. It was a selfish thought, but not a cruel one, she just wanted to make sure they'd be safe. There'd be no talking them out of it now, she knew. They weren't weak though, hopefully they'd be safe for their journey together. After that was done, when Pyrrha confronted Cinder, she'd make sure that they weren't involved in that fight. Then she would kill the bitch and anyone else who was working with her.

Pyrrha glanced over at some of the letters she had received from her parents earlier. They had wanted her to come back home but understood when she said she had to 'fulfill her duty as a Huntress and help Vale'. She knew that she had been overselling her contribution to the cause here, but she just couldn't face going back. Wasn't sure that she'd be able to keep on moving forward if she did. Pyrrha knew her parents would be kind and understanding, but as much as they knew what it meant for her to be a huntress, they would try to keep her close, keep her safe, and Pyrrha had more to do, even if her destiny wasn't what she thought it was. At the very least, there was a chance she would see them again on this trip, though it sounded like they would be going to Mistral and Argus was a fair way away from there. Once there she could contact them by scroll at least.

"It looks like were going to Mistral!" Nora shouts, a few people in the tent looking around at her before shrugging. People leaving wasn't that unusual here, and some of the tentmates were beginning to get used to Nora's exuberance.

Ren nodded "Yes. We have a fair amount of time to prepare, but we should pack well. It will be a long journey to Mistral."

Preparing will be important. Pyrrha will help out with the packing, but she's confidant that Ren will prepare enough supplies. She'll focus on making sure that she's strong enough, so that she won't lose another teammate.

* * *

AN: **This is from Pyrrha's perspective, the next will be from Ruby's and it will continue alternating between them for some time. I'll leave another Author's note when that's about to change**.


	3. Chapter 3 - Verdigris

Chapter 3 - Verdigris

Ruby could hear the sounds of destruction and faintly catch the screams even from this ridge, far away from the town below. The fires raging within and packs of Grimm heading towards it were also a good sign as to the attack going on.

Waiting until a couple of Nevermore's flew, Ruby launched herself into the air, hooking on to the wing of the last one with her scythe. With her semblance, running into town would hardly be an issue, but using the Grimm as transport saved on Aura. It also made it easy to kill the beast once it arrived over a 'hotspot' of Grimm. Ruby would have chuckled at the pun given the fires, but now really wasn't the time for that. Now was the time for Mechanical Rose to show off her stuff.

Racing ahead from the broken statue she had landed on, Ruby struck out with her scythe, using her semblance to burst back and forth between each foe as she cut them down. Most of the Beowolves just charged head on and got sliced apart before they could touch her, and the few that tried to move out of the way were caught by her scythe's reach and ripped apart, their movements obvious.

After clearing her way through a dozen of them she was hit in the face by a tile. It was surprising and thrown decently fast, but it was more surprising than hurtful or Aura depleting. Her silver eyes were drawn to the top of a building across the street where there was a slightly larger Beowolf than the ones she had just cut down, glaring down at her. It raises its arm with another tile as she levels her scythe at it, switching it into rifle mode. She takes a split second to switch over to it's new firing mode as the Grimm hurled another tile towards her.

* * *

_A couple weeks ago…_

She turned the blade over again a few times before putting it back on the anvil. She had known this task would be difficult before she had even started, but some of this detail was even more difficult than she had imagined.

The wiring and circuitry had worked with shift mechanisms before, but the degree to which the blade shifted shape was vastly different on her sniper scythe than it had been before. It wasn't impossible though, just incredibly difficult to get the lines laid out precisely enough within the blades. The rest of the weapon she could take her time with, but since the blades needed to be reforged just so, she had to make the indentations perfect, while the blades were still hot.

The blades were hot, she had been using the forge for a couple hours now and she wasn't done yet. Trying to fan herself wasn't really working, so she scooted outside, opening the door just a crack before zipping through and closing it again.

Ruby tried to pull as little wind with her as she could when using her Semblance to slip outside the forge, just one of many things she was practicing with it. As she walked down the hallway, she thought of how she had been practicing with it, trying to perfect it. She had gotten better with it, able to pull tons of wind with her enhanced speed when she turned into petals during the food fight many months ago, but there was still more she could do, more ways she could shift herself as petals when she fought. She relied on it for speed, which it definitely provided, but there was so much more she could do. If she had practiced with it more then maybe she could have gotten past Mercury, maybe Penny would… well, worrying about 'maybes' wouldn't help. She would just have to learn and do better in the future.

Ruby got her chance to practice everyday now since her father finally let out of the house to go to Signal. He still worried about her, but even Taiyang had to admit she was doing better, and Signal wasn't too far away from her house. The school had been closed given the attack on Beacon and many of the other teachers drawn away to help clear out Vale and fight the Grimm gathered around Beacon, but it had the best forge around and when Ruby explained her plans with her weapon (and promised not to fight any Grimm at all on the way there or back, to just run if she saw any) he agreed to let her use it and lent her his key.

Ruby promised not to practice on any Grimm, but she got tons of chances to use her Semblance as she ran to the school and back each day. It was a difficult project, so it was going to take a few more days then Ruby had thought, but she'd still be ready by the time Pyrrha, Ren, and Nora would be meeting her (she hadn't told her father that part yet).

The school felt empty, though she thought there was at least a couple people wandering around, some maintenance staff and maybe a teacher or two to make sure that the school remained in good condition. In any case, no one seemed to investigate or be bothered by her using the forge, which was good with her. The school felt different with no one around though, empty, and wrong somehow. She'd be lying if she said she had never been worried about getting sent back, about things not working out at Beacon especially when she first started there, but never like this.

Feeling cooled down enough she went back into the forge, trying to bring as little cold with her as possible to ensure the forge would be at the right temperature. She had a lot more work to do before she could lay the wires down, but once it was done, her sweetheart was going to be amazing beyond belief.

* * *

Her rifle let out a bolt of green light streaking out of the barrel and blasting straight through the tile to slam into the Grimm that threw it. Three more lasers were fired in rapid succession, ripping through the Beowolf and killing it. She looked around for more Grimm and barely dodged the blow from the Beringel that snuck up from the side. The sneak attack missing, the ape-like Grimm roared at her to draw in more Grimm. Ruby charged at him with her scythe, the blade sinking in only a few inches into the Beringel's hip before stopping and getting stuck. The creature punched, the force helping free the blade from it, but also sending Ruby flying backward.

Shaking her head clear she barely dodged to the side from the Beowolf that was careening towards her. Looking up she saw the Beringel lift up another one, preparing to throw it at her. Ruby ran forward, turning into petals as she rushed straight at it, knowing that the creature was trying to track her movements for it's next throw. The timing was difficult, not to mention how much she had to practice just to pull off the maneuver, but it was for situations exactly like this that she had pushed her Semblance enough to make this technique possible.

'Thus kindly, I scatter' she thought as the petals, her very self, split off into three separate angles just before the Beowolf would have hit her. The three petal forms merged back together behind the Beringel and she struck at him twice with her scythe before backing off from his heavy swings as she turned to confront her. Backing off further she ran along the street, firing many more bolts at the Grimm, aiming her shots so that even when the Beringel dodged, the Beowolves that it had thrown at her and were now trying to return to the fight, would be in the line of fire and destroyed by her blasts.

Slamming its hands into the ground the Beringel sent a shockwave out that knocked Ruby off balance. Not bothering to turn around to see if the Beringel was upon her, Ruby leapt up to the roof of a nearby house, feeling the air just behind her from where the Beringel missed her by almost literally a hair.

On the roof, Ruby turned around and started letting out some strafing fire as she ran parallel to the Beringel. This lasted for a few shots before the Beringel leapt to meet her and punched at Ruby, forcing her to scatter out of the way and onto the ground bellow, half of the roof destroyed by the force of the attack.

* * *

_A couple months ago…_

Ruby stared at the blade and the scythe from her bed. She had been doing a lot of that since she'd woken up, trying to work on her weapon more. There wasn't much else she could do, she had been stuck on bed rest for the past few days, and even now that she was feeling good enough to walk around a bit, she didn't have the ability to really train or exert herself yet. Taiyang had been keeping them stored away for the first day, but after realizing how bored Ruby was getting brought them back to her so she'd have something else to do besides read books and look forlornly at her scroll. With the CCT down she couldn't contact anyone by scroll, unless they were already pretty much within shouting distance.

Rising up with a slight yawn Ruby decided to get dressed and head to the workshop/garage outside, taking the weapons with her. She'd studied them for long enough here, it was time to actually start writing down how to work out the mechanical issues. She thought she had a pretty good idea of what to do with them now, what it would look like at the end.

She had considered using a gear-based system like her Uncle's at first, before throwing that idea out. It would either be incompatible with the base pieces she was trying to combine or end up too bulky. The sword would end up being far slimmer and a bit shorter than her Uncle's, but she thought that would be fine for her, given her size and style. She may have patterned her moves off of Qrow's, but there was some variance between them. Even this, adding a sword mode would end up differently, as she still saw herself using the scythe more often, a better fit with her semblance.

But she wanted to add the sword as well. Beyond just as a remembrance, she felt it would be a good fit to her weapon and how she fought. It felt… right, somehow. That was the first step she had to knowing that this would work, that her gut told her that this would work, just like it had when she first started designing Crescent Rose. The scythe bladed components would need to be changed a bit, so it could change from a scythe to a sword. In the end the mech shift technology used to let her scythe act as a glaive could be modified to turn it into a sword as well, shifting it further down and along the shaft.

Holding up the blade again she saw the cord trailing off the end. It was thin, yet so incredibly strong. Too strong sometimes, and yet it felt like an integral element of the design. It might not truly be, but it still seemed important, and something that could be added on without increasing the bulk or real weight of the weapon. The cord didn't work by itself, though. She didn't need a backpack or anything but, a bracelet or wrist piece of some kind, that could work. With a spike on the end and a quick release function, maybe even a reel to pull though that could be tricky…

She quickly wrote those ideas down as notes while looking the cord over further. It was strong yet flexible, but far too short, damaged from what she knew its full length to be. The Atlesian metallurgy was impressive, but there were replacements other types she could use from Vale. Similar to the ones inside Crescent Rose, but she could afford them to be a bit thicker and a lot more durable here. The blade would end up using a mixture of the metal from the sword and the scythe blades. She could tell what metal was used there, the same steel compound used in many top end Atlesian military weapons, and she could meld it with Crescent Rose's blades, the compounds were fairly similar in structure.

She held the blade up one last time, to look at it in its full state one last time. Penny's blade would never be the same again, but she hoped that with time this weapon would become part of her own. A reminder of many times, and a promise to go further in the future. She placed the weapon down on the stand beside her scythe and began unrolling the blueprints on a table nearby. Writing at the top 'Mechanical Rose' she took her tools and began opening up Penny's blade to see the inner workings, to figure out how to work them into her Crescent Rose and combine the two weapons into something new.

* * *

The Beringel was strong, tough, and deceptively reflexive, but it wasn't fast. Not like Ruby was. As she recombined back on the ground, she saw the Beringel place its hands on the roof and launch itself into the air, looking to slam her into a fine paste when it landed on her. But it was still too slow, too obvious in its motions. Ruby dashed forward and then jumped straight up, her scythe now a blade as she hung in the air just behind the Beringel's back. The beast turned its head to look at her but couldn't move much more than that in the air, gazing upon her silhouette shrouded by the moon far beyond her. Ruby took Mechanical Rose in both hands and sliced down across it's back.

As Ruby fell, she switched her blade into gun mode and fired at the Beringel's good eye just before landing. The monster, having landed before her, was rushing her almost instantly after hitting the ground. It turned its head to the side, minimizing the damage the bullet would have caused, but the recoil from the gun pushed her just out of the way of the Grimm's sweep at her, which had been all she was really been hoping to accomplish from that shot.

Ruby touched the ground and threw herself back at the beast, a blur of red darting around it. She switched back and forth between sword and scythe mode, cutting into the creature rather than trying to stab it, and getting the blade caught again. To one side, then the other, around, over then even under, darting under it and catching its leg with her scythe trailing behind, the Beringel couldn't keep up with her darting attacks.

Misfortune eventually caught up with her as she rushed in trying to close for the clumsy swing the Beringel threw at her. It worked, but the swing happened to catch on the cord in between her armpiece and Mechanical Rose, pushing her off balance slightly. Caught off guard and knocked out of the zen like combat focus she was in, the Beringel grabbed her with the other arm before she recovered and threw her clean through the fancy window at the top of the largest building nearby. The damage hadn't gotten past her Aura, and she still had enough wherewithal to use her scythe to stabilize herself to avoid falling. Catching her breath for a moment, Ruby realized she still needed to learn how to use the cord better, position her hands more effectively so it wouldn't get caught like that. And she could practice using it right now.

Turning the scythe into a sword Ruby flips herself up and starts running up and down the tower, rose petals swirling around as she draws on her semblance, picking up her speed faster and faster. When she nears the point that's as fast as she can go, at the top of tower, she throws her sword into the Beringel that's turned back around to look at the petals. Ruby's already racing down by the time she hears the sword strike into the monster's chest, bursting down and out through the doors, pulling on the cord with both hands as she runs. Caught off guard by the speed and strength she's using, the Beringel is lifted into the air by the sword as the line draws taut. As the beast is pulled upward, Ruby presses the release on her armpiece to free herself as she jumps up. The Beringel hits the side of the building as Ruby, flipping through the air, kicks into it and grabs on to her blade. Planting her feet against it as she presses the change lever, she pulls Mechanical Rose free, the force rolling her around the Grimm as her sword shifts into a scythe. Completing the roll, she brings the back of her weapon down on the Beringel, knocking it towards the ground as the force sends her upward, before changing her Rose one last time, this time to form a glaive as she uses her Semblance to charge down towards the falling Beringel. Her red cloak whips around her as she strikes through the beast's chest and pin it into the ground. The Beringel can't move and a single shot fired into it from there causes the beast to disintegrate.

Ruby takes out her scroll as she messages her team. They question what's going on and she tells them that "You better hurry", which is true both in the sense that it'll help save more lives, and if they want to get there before Ruby's swept up the rest of the Grimm attacking this town. Putting the scroll back down, Ruby charges ahead, yelling as she moves to attack the next Beowolf in her path.


	4. Chapter 4 - The Next Step

Chapter 4 – The Next Step

Pyrrha was glad to be on this journey, she truly was. It gave her the chance to track down the woman who had murdered the boy she loved and a reason to get up and do something with her life. She was also travelling with her friends. Nora and Ren were amazing and somehow as crazy and steadfast as ever, and while she didn't know Ruby quite as well as her teammates, their teams had been friends for a long time, and she was a nice girl. Ruby was as open and joked as much as she had remembered, but she also seemed more mature than she had remembered, just in the little actions she did. She still had her silly moments like food dares with Nora, but there were times when she was entirely focused, like when she took down tons of Grimm attacking that village and helped lead an effective rescue operation for everyone injured or stuck there. It was possible she just hadn't ever noticed that side of Ruby before, but also possible that she only became that way since the Battle of Beacon. For all that though, she's bothered.

It's not her teammates or what they're doing that's causing her to feel bothered, or even going back to Mistral (those feelings are more bittersweet than anything), it's the lack of Grimm. Aside from the town that got attacked, they haven't run in to anything greater than a couple of Beowolves or Creepers. Not even real packs of any of those, one or two at worst. Which makes Pyrrha wonder what could be waiting for them if a stronger, older, more intelligent Grimm is trying to lead an ambush on them.

The attack on the settlement before was in some ways a relief, as horrible as it was to think about. It explained where some of the Grimm had gone off to. Looking at the battle afterwards though, it wasn't enough to explain it. Ruby had taken down an impressive number of Grimm by herself before the rest of the team arrived and got there, and all together they easily cleaned up the rest, but it still didn't feel like enough to explain how peaceful it was on every part of their journey. Pyrrha tried her best to push such thoughts from her mind, blaming them as paranoia from what happened to Beacon. That it won't happen here or at Signal, because this time they'll be ready to stop it.

The view of the town in front of them as they exit the forest path they were travelling along also brightens Pyrrha's spirits. The town is in classical Mistralian style. The architecture, the clothing, the colors, everything has a very familiar feel to it. What is surprising is the greeting they get at the entrance. An older man, who appears to be a town official of some kind possibly the Mayor given his hat, waves them over. Ruby approaches eagerly and says "Hello, sir. Whaaat seems to be the issue?"

"Well it was something that I was hoping you youngsters could help us with. We've been plagued by attacks from a particularly strong Grimm these past few weeks."

"A single Grimm? The same one each time?" Ren asks, sounding slightly more invested than usual.

"Yes, it seems to be the same one attacking us each time, though it's form is often different. We've managed to repel it every time, but our warriors haven't managed to kill it, whenever it's overwhelmed it just retreats into the forest and comes back again within a couple of days." Pyrrha notes that those are some interesting qualities for a Grimm to have. Fighting alone and different forms are unusual for most Grimm, though the skirmishing attacks just denotes a certain level of age and intelligence. From the look in Ruby's eyes, she seems to be considering all that as well.

"We'll take it down sir, don't worry. After we hunt it down do you mind if we rest here for the night before we carry on our journey?"

The man's face lights up with hope "Of course, we'd be more than happy to let you stay the night and give you some supplies if you could defeat this Grimm for us. As mayor of this town it's the least we could do, thank you so much." Pyrrha's surprised at how long it had been for her to not recognize his ceremonial garb and headdress that indicate his position. Reflecting on it, she realizes it hasn't been since her first tournament victory that she went down to any of these small towns.

"Alright, let's take down the Grimm" Ruby says punching her fist in the air. Pyrrha wondered at how she could be so carefree at times (Did she just not worry or was this some sort of personal mechanism she made to help keep the Grimm away?). She didn't know how to say anything about that, how to question Ruby on that without seeming rude, but after about fifteen minutes of travelling through the forest Ren brought up a relevant question.

"How do you know that we can take on the Grimm by ourselves? If it's hunting alone then it must be quite powerful?" Ren doesn't seem worried, just curious.

"It's because the village is still standing. They didn't have any Hunters to go with us, so this Grimm has probably only been going against their regular guards. If it's strong enough to do some damage and smart enough to retreat, but not enough of a threat to destroy them outright it'll probably be a perfect challenge for us." At Ruby's words, Pyrrha nodded along, feeling reassured that the leader had studied the situation well, despite how carefree she could seem at times.

"Besides, we're awesome, so we'll take down any nasty ol' Grimm that's trying to hurt people." Those words however don't make Pyrrha think that Ruby's really getting the situation clearly, and Nora's enthusiastic encouragement of that sentiment just sets her to grinding her teeth before she lets out a soft sigh.

Nora starts chattering away at Ren while they head off in the direction that the Grimm was sighted as heading off in. After about a half-hour they come across a clearing in the woods and Ruby holds up a hand for everyone to stop. "The Grimm is probably going to be nearby this area somewhere. I'll scout ahead with my speed and try to draw it back here. We can use this clearing as a good place to fight it without the other trees getting in the way of our shots or combinations."

Pyrrha nods, feeling conflicted again. Ruby could seem so immature at times, and yet at others she showed herself to be an effective and thoughtful leader. As she zipped off Pyrrha decided to try and focus on the good, and she was glad that she had someone almost as strong as herself helping them out on this journey.

Nora and Ren were busying themselves trying to debate Team names which Pyrrha listened on with some amusement. She didn't really care what the Team name would be herself, but it was interesting to hear Nora and Ren's opinions and the reasons they tried to use to back them up.

"PRNR for team Primary is the best choice. There are the most members from team Juniper so Pyrrha's name should be at the front, plus it connects to colors, Ren. Well, sorta, but that's good enough." Nora boldly proclaimed while Ren lightly shook his head.

"RPVR standing for River is the best team name because Ruby is the only team leader of our group and we're following her on her mission." Ren voice is calm, but he seems to be standing firm against Nora here.

"River isn't even a color, so we can't use that."

"While the team names generally relate to colors, they don't have to. Which is beside the point as River is generally seen as referring to blue, like most clear rivers would appear to be to our eyes."

"Objection! The defendant will clearly note that none of the team members on this team use the color blue as a major element on our outfits, therefore your argument is invalid."

"Overruled" Ren states in a monotone, but with a slight twitch of his lips that shows he's actually quite amused by all of this. "There is only one Primary color heavily used among members of the team (red, and only by half the team), hardly making it a more suitable name than River."

Nora, looking for assistance, casts her eye on Pyrrha. "C'mon Pyrrha, you agree that we should go with Primary, right? You'll get your name first~" she sing-songs trying to tempt her to Nora's side.

Pyrrha says "While flattering, I'm not sure that a team name is necessarily-" She hears a crack behind her and stops talking, turning around. She can't see anything yet but can feel a slight vibration coming from the ground. "Get ready, it's coming here" she says as she draws Milo and Akouo.

Instantly her teammates move into battle ready positions, Ren drawing StormFlower and leaping up to a tree branch, aiming his guns across the clearing where some motion could be seen moving the trees on the other side. Nora pulled out Magnhild and readied herself to charge at what was hidden by the trees.

They hear a shout of "Incoming!" From Ruby and see a bunch of stone in-between the tree branches, moving towards their scarlet clad leader. Ruby was backing away from it in the air, shooting at it with her rifle. She flies across the clearing as the creature bursts through the trees. It's a conglomerate of rocks that seem to be piled together to make a torso and then four more for its 'legs' and 'arms' that seem to be tethered to it by and invisible force, not directly connected to the torso. Sticking out from one of the rocks is a white and red mask, denoting it as a creature of Grimm.

Ren is leaping through the air shooting at it, causing the Grimm to raise one of its arms in defence while Nora jumps forward and smashes the other arm away before it can get near Ruby or Pyrrha. The rock goes flying around, but slows down as it goes farther away, almost like it's stretching like a rubber band before ricocheting back. Ruby jumps well over it and switches her gun mode while Pyrrha jumps on it, using it as a literal stepping stone to strike at the beast's torso with Milo in sword mode, but the sword scrapes off the rock, the cuts shallow and almost completely ineffectual.

Ruby fired at it, using her new laser firing mode that seemed familiar, but Pyrrha didn't have time to focus on that right now. The lasers were doing more damage than her own strikes, but not nearly enough to be effective as a strategy for taking the Grimm down. Using her semblance Ruby rushed down at an arm and struck it with her scythe. Pyrrha flipped away from the Grimm kicking at her while using her semblance to increase the force behind Ruby's strike. It cut in a third the way through its arm, leaving cracks running throughout it.

The monster's other arm prepares to strike Ruby down as she's trying to pull her scythe free and escape, but then moves to block Ren's strikes. Ruby pulls the blade out and dashes over to Nora calling out "Nora, Sugar Rush." Pyrrha and Ren distract the creature some more, sensing what Ruby is going for as she grabs a giddy Nora and swings her around quickly before letting her go. Nora soars across the clearing, slamming into the arm with Magnhild and shattering it into several hundred pieces with her mighty hammer blow.

An arm of pitch-black darkness with a few bone studs extends out from where the arm would have been attached to the torso. The arm sweeps out reaching toward one of the largest trees that's been felled nearby. Oh no you don't, Pyrrha thinks, jumping up and using her shield and Polarity to avoid the Grimm's attacks and furiously slash at the Grimm arm. The creature screeches in pain and flails as the arm falls apart under Pyrrha's blows and begins disintegrating.

The creature, still disoriented, is caught off guard by Ren who slashes at the creature's mask. The Grimm goes into a rage, it's free arm almost knocking Ren aside before Nora redirects the blow upwards with a hammer strike. "It's trying to protect it's mask, that's it's weak spot" Ren calls out to the others. The Grimm is now raising its arm in front of its mask, obviously trying to protect its head from attacks as it starts to back out of the clearing.

"If it's trying to protect the mask then we-" Ruby begins to say before Pyrrha interrupts her.

"I can get it" she says, rushing forward with Milo in spear mode.

"Uh, ok good initiative. Let's back her up and make an opening, Crimson Lotus Storm!" Ruby runs around the creature a whirlwind of petals appearing as she calls upon her Semblance. Ren moves from left to right, strafing the creature and causing it to adjust its arm as it tries to react to his shots while dealing with Ruby, who's all around it. Nora uses that distraction to throw herself forward, boosting ahead with a grenade and knocking the arm upwards and out of place with her hammer.

Pyrrha had intended to just use her semblance to weave her spear around the arm and hit it several times with that, but she can appreciate the opening they gave her. She hurls Akouo at the Grimm's mask before jumping up. Her shield cracks the mask even more than the slashes Ren did, before it flies back to her with Polarity. The shield meets her mid air, and she uses it to leap at the mask, piercing straight through it with a powerful thrust from her spear.

The creature collapses almost instantly, the rocks falling to ground with a loud clatter. The Geist appears in its place, hovering in the air for a second before disintegrating. Pyrrha goes to retrieve her spear while the team chats about their victory before finding that Milo is now fully stuck in the rock. "Well, that's disappointing."

"Maybe we can chisel it free?" Ren suggests, before Nora adds on.

"Yeah, let's smash it open" she says holding Magnhild up high, as if there would have been any question otherwise what she'd be using to break open the rock.

"N-" Pyrrha goes to ask her to stop, before thinking for a moment and then saying, "Just wait till I say so." She gets a grip on it and channels her Aura into the weapon. "Alright, go ahead."

Nora takes a few strides forward and brings her hammer up like she's trying to score the high prize on a fair game, slamming it into the rock. The rock breaks apart sending Pyrrha tumbling down, but her weapon was protected by her Aura, so Milo looks unharmed, though the rock she was standing on broke apart sending her tumbling down on her rear. She can't help but laugh at the situation. It wasn't incredibly funny, but with the tension of battle gone, it felt hilarious to her and everyone's laughing along with her soon.


	5. Chapter 5 - Let's Just Live

Chapter 5 – Let's Just Live

Ruby leads the team back to the town, the journey being thankfully uneventful after the defeat of that Geist. She was going to sleep in a bed tonight! That might not seem like a big deal to most, but after the several weeks of camping in the wilderness, Ruby had really come to appreciate having a warm bed to sleep in and a solid roof over her head.

They taught basic survival training at Signal but… Ruby still felt a little out of place and awkward when trying to apply it here. She had skipped two years of Signal, and while she'd worked hard to catch up at Beacon, outdoorsman skills didn't get the same study here there as they got at Signal. It was more specialized at Beacon, focused on fighting and Grimm even more, assuming you already had the foundational training so you could make weapons and survive in the wilderness. Which Ruby totally could… just not as well as the others. The one mission she took with Team RWBY had Doctor Oobleck (who was alive according to Pyrrha! That had been good to hear) there to help them and the mission had really been quite short. This one was long, and while no one had called her out on the tiny little things she missed whenever they were setting up camp, she felt a little inadequate as a leader, making those mistakes.

When they arrive, they slow down to actually take in the sights this time, like actually reading the sign at the front that says the town's called Quara. Quara is an interesting place, the people seem really friendly and the buildings are quite differently designed from Vale. Even discounting the city as being far more advanced, there's a certain rustic design to the town that seems almost rural, even while the town must have more technology than that. The weapons Ruby's seen on the few guards have a coating that looks like it's made of wood, but actually makes decent use of mech-shift technology, and likely even dust chambers in some cases. The clothing styles feel different to Ruby, but beyond 'more robes' she wouldn't know how to describe it having never learned too much about fashion.

Pyrrha points out to the team where the mayoral office is, the building definitely looking important, but not feeling different from three other buildings they had come across that looked large and important too. She's sure that she'll get used to the differences soon but for now everything's still pretty new. This is also (sorta) Ruby's first experience with Mistralian culture. She hadn't had a chance to take in those differences in Mistral yet, not running into some towns because going through wilderness was a lot faster at times and the only other place that was more than small farming settlement had been on fire and under siege by Grimm. Looking back on it and taking into account the damages done by the Beringel and the Grimm horde there, the villages were actually pretty similar.

Ruby knocked on the door three times, waiting a minute for the man to open the door. "Oh, you're back already? If you couldn't find it, that's alright-"

"We found it just fine, that Geist won't bother you anymore." Ruby cheerfully says. The Geist had some tricks, but against the whole team, it wasn't a problem. The whole of Team River (a leader shouldn't get involved in debates over team names, but in her head, she knew that River was clearly the superior choice in team name) had pulled together well for that fight. They hadn't had a big fight like that since then, but they'd been practicing as they travelled, and Ruby made sure to drill in the combo names and what each one meant. It had been neat to see Jaune copy her naming strategies in the tournament but kinda painful when she saw that he hadn't got how they worked or realized the time Ruby had put into making sure that everyone knew how to pull them off together perfectly. If pressed she would admit that the timing could still be tightened up in pulling off their combos and synchronizing their action, but at least she hadn't stopped to argue with the team about it in the middle of the fight (if it wasn't for Pyrrha that Vytal fight would have gone a lot differently). Even if thinking of her lost friend was still painful at times, it was a good memory, and Ruby wasn't going to let the loss take away or taint all the good memories too.

Thinking of Pyrrha, Ruby realized that she seemed happier. She still wasn't smiling much since the attack on Beacon (not real smiles, Ruby could tell that many of them were forced), but there was a certain tension that had been drained from her shoulders since she got to Mistral, and noticeably moreso when they got to this town and talked to the people. She seemed at home here, or something closer to that than she had been. It made Ruby glad to see her friend happy though she wondered if she had felt out of place at Beacon and she hadn't noticed it then, or if it was just that touch of familiarity was comforting after their lives got flipped upside down. In any case, her being in a better mood was a good thing, and Ruby would strive to try and keep it up.

"Thank you again so much for your efforts Hunters. Are you sure there is nothing more we can do to help you on your journey?" The mayor said and Ruby was glad to help but starting to feel a little embarrassed at all the praise.

"It's fine, you've given us as many supplies as we can carry anyways." It was true, the food wouldn't last four growing Hunter and Huntresses a long time, since it had to fit in with their other gear, but it was nice to have. Ruby waved goodbye at him after accepting the voucher he gave them and headed off to explore the town.

The town was beautiful and fun to explore, especially with Pyrrha showing her around and explaining the meaning behind some of the statues and design features. A lot of focus on honourable warriors, great dramas, and the legacy an individual leaves behind. Ruby privately wondered if her mom would have been known more if she had been lived and died in Mistral, rather than Vale. Her actions held great meaning, Ruby knew that. Summer had saved many lives as a Huntress… but pretty much no one outside her family remembered her now.

"Did you want to say something?" Pyrrha asked, distracting Ruby out of her thoughts and making that what she was thinking must be somewhat obvious.

The words where on the tip of her tongue and yet she found herself swapping them out at the last moment. "I was just wondering what your family was like, what was your 'legacy'? If, uh, it isn't too rude to ask that is." Ruby wanted to tell Pyrrha her thoughts, that she was her friend, but it was hard for her to talk about Summer Rose. Ruby loved her mom, but there were also feelings there that she wasn't happy about. Anger, resentment, blame, and she worried that if she got started those feelings might come spilling out too.

"It's not rude at all, we've known each other for some time and are teammates. It would be rather impolite to ask that about someone you just met, unless they first initiate the topic" Pyrrha said, stating out some more social mores of Mistralian culture. Ruby got some of them, especially easy to understand stuff like this, but a lot of it went over her head.

"My family has an impressively well detailed history, but no great deeds or heroes recorded in my line. We are a minor noble family and have many warriors each of whom have done much good in defending the world against the Grimm, but they've never become very noteworthy beyond our family." Her gaze drops down as she continues, her expression slightly darker "My father married into the family and had great skill with weapons, but I was the first 'prodigy' of the Nikos line. It's- there have been many expectations placed on me and my actions, both in and out of the tournament ring." Her face rises back up, determination clear to read on it. "I will uphold them, and make my mark on the world, to inspire others in turn."

"Oh, I'm sorry" she said as if just now realizing that Ruby was there. "That got a little heavy didn't it?"

Ruby shakes her head "No, no, it's good. I asked and it's interesting."

Pyrrha smiles (her more forced smile, but it's a sign that she's still trying, not truly upset or anything) and asks, "What about your family?"

"Uh, we don't really have anything like that in Vale. Like, everyone in my direct family has been Hunters, but there's no real 'legacy' or family history beyond that." She's not seizing the opening to talk about her mom, but Ruby justifies it as at least that being the truth and showing more of Vale's attitudes.

Pyrrha 'hmms' and they continue exploring the town for an hour or so until they run into Nora and Ren, who finished getting supplies and tried (well Nora was trying) to start up an arm-wrestling contest. Ruby felt that Nora would have won 'handily' had anyone taken her up on it, and almost said so until she realized that was something Yang would say. She hoped Yang was doing well and she was going to write to her sister as soon as they got to Haven, hoping that she understood why she was doing this.

It was getting late, and they planned for an early morning, so they went to the rooms that had been provided for them at the inn. Ruby was asleep almost as soon as her head hit the pillow.


	6. Chapter 6 - Brilliant Light's Cease

Chapter 6 – Brilliant Lights Cease

Pyrrha had left Quara feeling good. The townsfolk had hoped they could stay, and for once Pyrrha hadn't been hoping that her friends would consider it. She still worried for her friends, but they did well against that Geist, and if that was what constituted a great challenge, she knew they would be fine here, but she now felt like they could do even more.

Ruby had been getting them to remember different combos and team patterns, which was a different leadership style than she had been used to with Jaune, but it worked well. Pyrrha knew she hadn't been paying as much attention to those ideas when Ruby had presented them before, but she made a note try and do so now.

Ruby and the others were well and committed to their goal, and Pyrrha felt confident in their mission to take down Cinder. That confidence waned when Ruby went through a role call of the gear.

"Food?"

"Check!" Nora replied

"Water?"

"I have the water" Ren answered.

"Ammunition?"

"Locked and loaded, thanks to the Schnee Dust company" Nora said, taking out a grenade and juggling it for a moment, to everyone's slight worriment, before putting it back.

Ruby gave her a thumbs-up and said "Alright, then. Pass me the map and we'll head out!"

"Ren's got the map."

Ren shook his head "I don't have the map."

"What?" Nora squawked, looking around, checking to see if she had it. Ruby was looking pretty worried too. Pyrrha just sighed, reflecting that while they did well at times, they also had incidents like these too.

Interrupting their panic session, Pyrrha says "Ruby, you packed up the map this morning."

"Oh, right" Ruby says scratching the back of her head awkwardly. She pulled out the map and began pouring over it for a few minutes. Pyrrha offered "I could help you with that?"

Ruby waved her off, saying "No, I got this, just have to… figure out where we're… going."

Did she not know? They had even mentioned Shion village earlier this morning. Pyrrha resisted the urge to facepalm at Ruby's actions and wondered why she tried to do this when she obviously didn't know how.

Snatching the map out of her hands Pyrrha said "We're heading to Shion village. I travelled around Anima a fair bit for tournaments, so I know some of the paths here. Mostly by airship, but I was taught some of the paths to get back there in case anything happened. Going along this trail" she says, pointing out that trail to Ruby on the map "Let's us make it to Shion the fastest. If Shion doesn't have an airship then we can either go through the mountains here or travel down river there to make it to the next closest villages that might have transport to Haven Academy. Either one of those also gets us closer to Haven overall, so they're good choices that will help cut down our travel time by a few days even if they don't." She points out the different routes on the maps.

"With any luck we'll be at Haven in a month or two." Pyrrha finishes, handing Ruby back the map to let her familiarise herself with it more. Ruby looks dismayed.

"It could take two more months?" Ruby asks while she looks over the map more.

Pyrrha responds "If we're lucky, then yes, it's possible we could make it that fast. Anima is a large continent. This journey will take time.

Ren questions Ruby "How long did you think this trip was going to take?"

Ruby seems quite flustered when she says "I don't know. I'm from a small place, I didn't think it would take that long."

Pyrrha can't help herself from asking "But how long did you think it would take?"

"Two weeks?" At Pyrrha's raised eyebrow she waves her arms around "Fine, three weeks then!"

She's a capable leader at times, but Pyrrha finds herself disappointed when she sees Ruby like this. "This isn't a game Ruby, this is supposed to be a serious mission. If you can't handle it…" Her voice trails off, especially since she realizes she doesn't know what to say next.

Ruby's silver gaze bores into Pyrrha's green eyes with a disturbing intensity "I might not have known about maps or how big this place is, but that doesn't mean I'm not committed."

Pyrrha breaks her gaze away and says "I'm sorry, I- I get that. Just know that if you need a hand you can ask."

Ruby nods but there's still a bit of tension hanging in the air for a half second until Nora says "Now that we got our travel plans straightened out, are we going to visit your home Pyrrha?"

"I doubt it. There's no detour we could take that would lead us to Anima on our journey." She points out it's location for all four of them on the map. "It's located well past Haven, over at the Northern edge of Mistral, serving as a 'boarder city' between us and Atlas. It's possible we could go there after are mission or that it might take us there, but I'm fine with missing out on it so long as we can… stop… Cinder." Pyrrha gets distracted by whatever caused her companions to stop and sees that they've reached Shion, only to find horror.

There are corpses strewn around and buildings have been destroyed. They move in quickly, keeping aware as they enter the place, but they don't find any Grimm remaining here. Ruby says "Search for survivors" and they start looking for them. Before they can really split up to cover more ground Ren calls them over, having spotted one.

It's a huntsman but his armor is damaged, and his hand is pressed over a wound on his gut and attack that must have broken through his aura. He's sitting on the ground, his back propped up against the broken remains of a wall. Ren runs up first and asks him "What happened here?"

The man coughs a little as he responds "Bandits, the whole tribe came here." Pyrrha wonders why bandits would cause such unnecessary destruction while raiding a town, but the next words out of his mouth clarify that. "Then the panic brought the Grimm."

"Alright, let's take him to the nearest hospital" Ruby says, pulling out the map again trying to find the best route.

"I can carry him there no problem" Nora says, and Pyrrha is glad to see them want to try so hard to help others, but she's seen his wounds too. Ren is looking over their shoulders at her and shaking his head.

"It's too late" Pyrrha says, placing a hand on each of them. They turn and see that the man is completely motionless, lifeless.

"Should we… bury him?" Ruby asks.

Ren walks past "Leave him. We should move out, it isn't safe here." Pyrrha hadn't realized how hard this would hit him, but the wounds of Beacon were still lying on all of them, and she suspected this also connected to his past as well. Nora walked back to talk with him while Ruby and Pyrrha looked on at the fallen man for a moment.

Ruby breaks the silence first "He's right, it isn't safe here. Still, I want to check out the place to see if there are any survivors that aren't too badly injured. Go with the others and keep them safe."

"And what about you? You'll be there all by yourself."

"I'll be fine. I'm fast, so I can flee if I need to. I'll probably end up meeting up with you guys before you've even gone too far from the village."

It's somewhat risky, but Ruby is the best one of the team to try such a thing. Ruby zips off through the village and Pyrrha jogs back toward Nora and Ren. They leave the village in silence and continue walking for fifteen minutes before Ruby rushes back in. She's tired and panting, and just shakes her head once before joining them in their walk.

Pyrrha thinks about saying something to encourage her, but nothing comes to mind. Even the thought of 'at least you tried' feels trite and worthless. What's the point if they can't stop any of this?

Everyone seems to be in such a sour mood that Pyrrha was surprised when not even a single Beowolf attacked them on the rest of their journey. Eventually with night falling they set up camp. Pyrrha decided to take one of the middle watches when the others rested, getting alerted by Ren after his shift. Pyrrha hadn't been able to fall asleep anyways.

Taking out her scroll she saw that there was still no signal, but she wasn't looking to call anyone right now. She played a video that she had recorded months ago, where all of team Juniper was celebrating the end of their first term exams. Looking back on it, it was hardly a big deal, and even then the video didn't go on for a long time. Pyrrha (as the one taking the video) had probably focused too much on Jaune given that this was supposed to be a team celebration. He had just seemed… so happy. So carefree. She only wishes there were more, more memories of Jaune she could hold on to.

She barely hears the rustling behind her that lets her know that Ruby is up as well. Her wish is selfish, and she knows it. Staying in the past won't save her friends, trying to trust in their potential will just lead to their deaths when she's unable to help. Pyrrha deletes the video and turns to face Ruby who just left her hiding spot.

"Pyrrha…" Ruby seems at a loss to say anything else but obviously unhappy about it.

"It's my video, I can delete it if I want" Pyrrha snaps back, ignoring any wetness in her eyes.

Ruby pauses for a moment, then says "It is but- look there might come a time when you want to see him, see it, again. It shouldn't be fully off your scroll yet, the data still there in your deleted section. Just, put it away if you have to. Put it in some file on your scroll or put it on Ren's or Nora's or my scroll if you want to. That way, if some day you feel like you can look at it again, that you want to remember, well, then you can."

Pyrrha nods jerkily and holds out her hand for Ruby's scroll and she moves the file onto there. She doesn't really think that she'll need it, tells herself that, but… well it's easier than arguing with the team leader anyways. That's why she did it. She won't hold on to those ideals of the past and let them drag her down again. She watched as Ruby went back to her sleeping roll and then Pyrrha settled into her forms. She already knew them by heart, but she'd practice them further, complete them faster, use her semblance while going through them. Anything she could to get just a little bit better.


	7. Chapter 7 - Unforgiving World

Chapter 7 - Unforgiving World

The journey had been going along well since Ruby had gotten a better idea of how long it would be. She had been trying to learn wilderness skills from the others. Pyrrha was decently trained, but it seemed like Ren and Nora had some of the best skills. She had known that they were orphans, but she hadn't ever asked what orphanage or where exactly they were from, and now suspected that they had spent a fair amount of time learning to live off the land before deciding to become hunters.

She had thought she's been getting better at this sort of stuff which is why she was surprised when she saw a settlement up ahead way earlier than she thought she would have. "Uh, guys, did I forget about a town here? Because I thought we were at least a few days out from the next one." Not that Ruby was complaining (as much as she was getting used to this didn't mean she didn't like staying under a dry roof), but she really thought that she had gotten a hang of the maps after Pyrrha gave her some pointers.

Judging by the look on Pyrrha's face she also hadn't spotted it. Frowning, Pyrrha pulled out the map, her eyes scanning over it a few times before she put it back away. "No, I can't seem to find it here either."

"Are those buildings damaged?" Nora questions having walked up enough to see past the opening in the wall to spot the buildings within.

"Quick, check for survivors, and keep your eyes peeled everyone!" Ruby said while rushing ahead. The 'eyes peeled' was more for any dangers, be they Grimm or bandits that might be located within. There wasn't any fire (or at least no smoke) inside, which was either a good sign or a bad sign.

The team dashed inside and looked around, none of them separating too far from anyone else but looking in all directions and finding… nothing. No bodies, no bloodshed, no weapons, no tools nearby the half-finished buildings, no sign of people. Not of anyone having lived here for a long time. Ren voices what Ruby was starting to think "It almost seems like this town was abandoned."

Nora hops around from a couple buildings getting a better vantage point before dropping down. "Hey guys, I think I found something." Her voice would be more urgent if it was people she had found, but Ruby was glad that she had found something. Jumping down Nora pushed aside some growth that had covered a sign. Everyone gathered close to the sign that read 'Oniyuri'.

"Oniyuri? I've never heard of it before." Pyrrha shook her head as well, but something seemed to click in place in Ren's head.

"I have. Oniyuri would be Anima's mountain Glen… had it ever been finished." Walking a few steps away from the rest of the group he continued. "Oniyuri was the product of a bunch of wealthy individuals unhappy with how Mistral was being run. Pooling their resources together to try and get away from the kingdom and make their own city, with its own laws. They hoped that one day it could maybe even become its own kingdom. Many thought it would be the future. I know my parents did."

Ruby looked at the town, which now they were inside it and she could see more without the forest obstructing her view actually did seem large enough to be a city, had the work ever been finished. Nothing seemed damaged so Ruby wondered out loud "What happened?"

"What always happens" Ren responds as he wipes aside some dust from a small wall, revealing a claw mark underneath.

"The Grimm." Even if time had covered up most of these marks, there were likely more hidden about, signs of when the Grimm had been drawn here and mad the goal of making this city impossible. It was surprising the place hadn't been destroyed yet, but without the people working here to draw the Grimm in with their fear it looks like the Grimm had been attracted to other settlements instead, leaving the half-finished hopes built here to eventually crumble away over time.

"Not just any one Grimm" Ren said. Looking over at Nora Ruby could see that meant something to her as well, though she couldn't discern what Nora was feeling beyond concern for Ren.

Pyrrha stepped forward and asked, "Is there a particular Grimm we should be worried about here?"

Ren took a deep breath, but it was Nora who spoke up. "The Nuckelavee. There's a really old one that's been around these parts for many years." Nora's voice doesn't have any sort of the usual joviality Ruby's accustomed to hearing, just grim seriousness. "It's the Grimm that destroyed our village." Ren's eyes are closed and jaw clenched, but he gives a slight nod confirming her words, possibly encouraging her to go on.

"We were only-" whatever Nora was going to say is cut off by Pyrrha holding up her fist.

"Someone else is hear. Coming towards us, fast." She pulls out Milo and Akouo and Ruby draws Mechanical Rose alongside the others pulling out their weapons. They look around, able to hear the footsteps rapidly approaching now, and while it sounds like it must be a human they can't figure out where it's coming from.

Suddenly a figure flies over their heads, landing in front of them. He's a man with dark brown hair tied into a long braid and wearing a brown and white outfit. His wrist blades flip out as he rushes towards them. Ren rushes at him, striking with Stormflower, but the stranger blocks the strikes with his own blades and counters Ren's kicks before sending one back at him that even blocked sends Ren flying backwards.

Ruby shifts her weapon into sword form as he approaches and slashes at him. He dodges around the strike and flurries her with strikes from his blades, giggling and laughing all the while as he does so. Ruby counters most of them but is forced backwards away from the others as he strikes. She throws out the spike towards him, but his reflexes are too good. Moving his head to the side, he follows that motion moving around her guard and scraping her Aura with a blade as she doesn't quite manage to dodge in time.

The man leaps away from her to land on Pyrrha's shield. Before he can get a grip on it, she thrusts Milo upwards, pushing him off as Nora moves from behind him to hit him with Magnhild. Pyrrha strikes at him with her spear, but he deflects the strike with a wrist blade and uses the force to push him away from where Nora was setting up to hit him. He pushes the hammer down and jumps off from it, crashing through a tower. When the dust clears Ruby can see that he's still within the building, having braced himself with his feet between the supports.

"Who are you?" Ren calls out, to which the man casually jumps and begins talking to them.

"Who I am matters not to you, or you, or even you" he says, pointing to Ren, Nora, and Pyrrha in turn. No, I only matter to you." Pointing at Ruby, she feels very unsure and unnerved by this man.

"Me?" She asks, only to get more of that disturbing laughter again, full blown chortling this time, beyond the few giggles that escaped him when they were fighting.

"You- you haven't the slightest clue, do you? Oh, how exciting this must be for you!" Even when he seems to be controlling himself here, his eyes still have a hint of that deranged look about them.

"If you matter to her then it would be at least polite to tell her your name. And what you want" Pyrrha says icily.

"My name is Tyrian, and I'm here to whisk you away with me, my little flower."

Nora steps in-between Tyrian and Ruby "And what if she doesn't want to go with you?" She asks, glaring at him.

He frowns, and then says as if it was the most obvious thing in the world "Well, I'll take her."

Pyrrha steps to the side and in front of Nora (Ruby thinks it to set up a pincer move between them if Tyrian moves in on her) "We aren't going to let you."

He breathes in, as if savoring the moment and says "Good." His eyes look more deranged than ever while also showing the utter delight he takes in the idea of fighting them.

He rushes around, and Pyrrha moves to defend Ruby, but Tyrian just starts attacking her instead. Jumping up he spins around on her shield before kicking at Ruby who moves to sweep him off with her scythe. Having to dodge Pyrrha' spear thrust and slightly pulled off by the Polarity she uses on his wrist blades, the kick doesn't slam heavily into Ruby, but it does stop her attack.

Ren tries to strike at him while Nora swings her hammer from behind, but Tyrian catches one of Ren's blades and twist him around to through him into Nora.

Pyrrha and Ruby move in at him, Pyrrha slashing from the front with Akouo in short sword form while Ruby uses her scythe to reach around and cut him from the sides and overhead. The two of them finally turned the tables and were pushing him back for a change, and when he tried to jump away to get at Nora and Ren again Ruby dashed upwards, flowing around his counter attack as the bunch of petals that made her up split apart around it before recombining and knocking him back down with the back of her scythe.

Tyrian managed to recover in the air enough to dodge the attacks Pyrrha sent at him and even counter with a kick that sent her up in the air. He struck with an attack from all his blades towards her midsection that she blocked with her shield. Since she was mid air it knocked her backwards with no way to resist or steady herself, sending her crashing into what would have been a fountain.

Ruby struck at him from behind with her scythe, which he turned around to block, only for his arms to suddenly jerk higher. Surprise filled his face as Pyrrha used Polarity to drag his wrist blades away from Mechanical Rose as it descended straight into his-. Ruby was shocked by the jarring stop as her scythe couldn't move any farther down. Tyrian's 'belt' had uncoiled itself around his waist and revealed its true form as a scorpion tail, blocking her attack. It coiled around the shaft and yanked the scythe out of her grip as he launched into a devastating series of kicks into her, a final sidekick knocking her backwards as he turned to face Nora and Ren.

Ruby picked herself off the ground and saw Tyrian battering away at Nora, keeping Ren distracted with his blades. Pyrrha made sure that Tyrian couldn't land any hits on Ren, but Ren wasn't able to read the erratic motions well enough to land anything more than glancing blows on the madman. Ruby called her blade back to her with the wire, and as it hurtles towards Tyrian on it's way to her he bends backwards, the angle he ends up at looks almost unnatural and leaves him staring upside down at her. He grins and rushes towards her on all fours, Ren too surprised to stop him. Pyrrha tried to run forward but she was too far away. Ruby's arm snapped back as she grabbed onto her scythe, leaving her open for a strike from Tyrian's tail as he flipped himself up- only for that strike to be blocked by Qrow sliding in-between them, deflecting the tail with Harbinger, the large sword on his back.

Qrow smiled at her and just said "Hey" softly before turning to face the scorpion faunas.

Tyrian took a step back, opening his arms dramatically, and said "As I live and breathe, Qrow Branwen. A true huntsman has entered the fray." He bowed to Qrow as Ruby's uncle turned his head over slightly to look in askance at her. Ruby didn't have much more of a clue than him about the creep though.

"I don't know… he's weird." Which was true, this guy seemed to enjoy being as creepy as possible and hadn't given them any good reason or real answers as to why he was doing this! Ruby listened to them talk about a 'Queen' or some such and Qrow seemed to instantly know it was this person called 'Salem'. She didn't have much time to contemplate on everything she was missing as the fight soon recommenced.

Qrow was trading titanic blows with Tyrian but couldn't get past his defences. The one-time Pyrrha tried to move his wrist blades out of the way, the sudden directional change opened up Qrow more than Tyrian, Salem's pawn having adapted to Pyrrha's Semblance and Qrow having difficulties reading that past Tyrian's unconventional fighting style. Nora jumped back into the fight, joined by Ren, but the two of them were easily held off by Tyrian. "Don't come closer!" Qrow yelled as he reengaged with Tyrian, flipping through the air in a spinning strike that forced him down until he revealed a set of guns concealed within his wrist blade bracers. Ruby scowled but recognized that they were just getting in his way at this point.

"Fine!" Ruby said as she hopped up to the roof of one of the taller nearby structures and shifting Mechanical Rose to sniper mode. The fighting was too close for her to land a shot on Tyrian without risking hitting her uncle, until Tyrian managed to snake his tail around Qrow's arm and pull Harbinger away, chucking it into a wall behind him. When Tyrian backed off slightly to taunt Qrow, Ruby took her shot, just missing his head with her first shot and silently cursing her luck as he was more on guard and avoided the follow up laser shots. They drove him away from Qrow and minimized the damage from the subsequent Polarity attack from Pyrrha that used Qrow's blade to nearly cut off his arm.

"Is that, ha, the best, you g-" Tyrian's taunt is cut off by Qrow slamming his fist into Tyrian's face before grabbing the sword Pyrrha left hovering there. The two of them exchange more blows too close for anyone else to intervene. Tyrian uses his tail to unsettle one of Qrow's steps and land in a devastating flurry that breaks Qrow's aura, but before he manages to get an actually damaging strike, Qrow shifted Harbinger to Scythe mode and cut into Tyrian's side repaying the favour and breaking his aura. They paused for a moment, each one trying to plan out their next move, while Ruby leaped to another building for a better spot to snipe Tyrian from. Ruby landed straight on a support beam, but it must have been weakened over time and cracked apart the moment she landed, sending her tumbling down.

Tyrian saw his chance and disengaged, racing towards Ruby. Qrow quickly followed only to fall into the trap. Tyrian's stinger had a long reach, even when turned around to strike in front of him. From behind it struck Qrow in the stomach before he could block it. Ruby saw it through a window as she fell. Raising her gun up she took her shot even as she continued hurtling down, lining it up with where she knew Tyrian was. The shot ripped through the wall and cut clean through the end of Tyrian's tail. All three fighters fell to the ground in pain, albeit moreso for Qrow and Tyrain who had been already injured and had their auras broken.

Pyrrha charged towards the downed Tyrian, throwing Akouo and slashing with Milo, switching it from sword to spear mode as he backed up and then full out fled. She managed to clip his shoulder with one attack but couldn't stop him from scrambling away. Nora and Ren moved to help Ruby, who waved them off after standing, going to check on her uncle.

"Uncle Qrow! Are you alright?"

Qrow got up to one knee and said, "He didn't penetrate far, I'll be fine." The hand he pulled away from the wound that seemed to be shaking slightly along with the rest of him didn't help allay Ruby's concerns.

"Who was that guy?" "How did he find us?" "Uncle Qrow, what's going on?"

Panting heavily, he said "What's your favourite fairy tale?"

"I think I've already heard this conversation before" Pyrrha said as she rejoined the group, whipping blood off of Milo. "And I didn't like it the first time around."

"There's more than one fairy tale, and more than one 'deeper truth' hidden to the world."


	8. Chapter 8 - Legends

Chapter 8 - Legends

Pyrrha helped set the camp up (which wasn't much more than a bunch of logs to lean on and a fire pit in the center), while the others unpacked and got settled (Qrow getting settled seemed to involve drinking plenty from his flask). The others are sitting down, but Pyrrha remains standing, looking down on Qrow from the other side of the campfire. "Alright, talk. Tell us what this was all about" she demanded from Qrow.

He just raised an eyebrow at her from his position sprawled against a log. He was trying to portray himself as fine, but Pyrrha could tell that he was doing poorly. If she was in better spirits she might be feeling sorry for him, but she couldn't muster any sympathy at the moment. "I think we should fill everyone in on the whole Maiden thing first."

"Oh, so now it's ok to tell everyone?" Pyrrha fumed.

"Tell us what? What do young women have to do with why Tyrian tried to attack me?" Ruby asked. "Oh wait, I got it! Tyrian must be kidnapping young girls for an evil Grimm dragon, right?"

"Not quite. Maidenhood is passed down to young women, but there is no dragon involved. It actually refers to the Story of the Seasons…" Qrow launches into his telling of that fairy tale. He's storytelling is certainly rougher and less refined than Ozpin's, but it's captivating enough. Pyrrha can't find herself to be that enthralled by hearing it again so soon, with it reminding her of Cinder so much.

After the tale is done and Qrow's explained the full truth behind it Ruby turns to Pyrrha "You said you heard this one before. What does that mean?"

Qrow answers on her behalf "It means we already told her. We had her selected to be the next Fall Maiden, but…"

"But Cinder happened. She took half of the old Maiden's power and before I could have the other half transferred to me-" her voice seizes up for a moment. She knows that it's because she was too weak to accept the burden right away, that she had wanted a normal life, with Jau-. Forcing the words out she continues "Cinder killed her and took the full mantle of the Fall Maiden to herself."

Pyrrha can practically see the gears spinning in their heads as they put together this piece of the puzzle to everything that's happened. She can also see them beginning to feel betrayed by the fact that she's only saying this now. "They wanted to make me into their Maiden, their target, and they wouldn't even let me tell anyone else" Pyrrha says giving an accusatory stare Qrow's way. She wouldn't have told them anyways, but she was more than happy to use Qrow as a scapegoat for all the pressure he and the others had placed on her. Now that they knew it was going to be harder to convince the others to let her get revenge on Cinder, at least not with them trying to join along. She couldn't let that monster go, but she absolutely couldn't lose someone else trying to fight her. Pyrrha put plans on how to keep the others safe to the side for now as she focused on what Qrow was saying.

"…It was for your safety as much as anything else. There are a plenty of people willing to target the Maidens, if you were involved they could have targeted you for information."

"They wouldn't be able to just tell we knew about the Maidens just because we knew" Ren reasoned. "…Would they be able to tell instantly if we knew?" He asked, suddenly seeming to remember the way things were in the world were not as certain as he had thought a couple minutes ago.

"Heh, no, they couldn't just instantly tell that you knew. But the more people we told, the greater the risk of that information getting out of our hands, so we had to be very careful. And even accepting that you're trustworthy (which you are, which is why I'm telling you), if we told you all that, is there any way you wouldn't get involved?" Qrow countered. Ren bowed his head in defeat, but Nora jumped up.

"I'll have you know I'm great at keeping secrets and not getting involved. Why this one time-" She was cut off by Ren's hand slapping over her mouth, his expression unchanged. Pyrrha was pretty certain that some of this quirkiness must be a routine they improvised together, she just couldn't figure out how much. It did a good job of distracting people at least, which might be the point.

"Why was that Tyrian guy after me?"

"Like I said, there are people who want to stop people who would use their magic for good. You may not be a Maiden, but Silver Eyes are a rare trait of their own, and what you did at the Battle for Beacon put a target on your back."

"Another target you were willing to try and shift over to me it seems." Pyrrha wants to be angry with him, wants to be enraged over them claiming that she killed the Wyvern so their 'secret enemies' wouldn't target Ruby, but she couldn't manage more than mild disgust towards her teachers. It made too much sense. Pyrrha was already going to be involved and a target, having the enemies focus on her and keeping Ruby safe was smart, and Pyrrha didn't want the younger girl to be attacked. Not that it seemed to have done much good.

Qrow accepts Pyrrha's accusation with a half shrug. "Not many people know about the Silver Eyes, but there are a few powerful people that do know and aren't happy that someone's able to use them. That's why I've been keeping an eye on you, to make sure that all of you were safe." He takes a few more swigs from his flask, unperturbed by Pyrrha's glare.

Did he know that Ruby would invite her and the others along this journey? Did he adapt other plans he had for this? Pyrrha didn't know, but she was tired of all this. "Enough bullshit excuses or justifications. Just tell us the truth about what is going on right now." The rest of her team gasps in shock, but Pyrrha can't bring herself to care about that, about seeming like a nice girl when getting used and played by people they should be able to trust.

Qrow narrows his eyes at her. "Sit down." He sighs "You're making me stressed out kid. I'll tell you what I know, but this really is best done through a story, so you might as well make yourself comfortable." That attitude of his so irritating, but there isn't much point in petulantly standing over him. Pyrrha takes a seat and gestures for him to continue as he finishes off his flask.

"The world's been around for a long time, and people have made dozens of gods up to worship over the years, even if it ain't super common nowadays. But if you believe Ozpin" something Pyrrha was very much not certain she did anymore "Then two of them are real…"

Pyrrha listened to his tale, drawn in against her will by this new rendition of 'The Tale of Two Brothers'. It was obviously a version of that tale, the references of choice, knowledge, life, and death that had been more oblique in the story she had grown up with were more direct, presented as literal facts here. The brothers of the story were not simple men but Gods, as Qrow told it. This fit the interpretation that these high-minded concepts each brother espoused and argued for with such fervor would belong more to powerful individuals, often guessed to truly be kings. Gods though, Pyrrha was still trying to wrap her head around it.

The Relics. Of course there would be something more hidden from them. From everyone, all the students unwittingly used as pawns to… all the students. _That's_ why they were rebuilding the school and focusing so heavily on protecting it. Ozpin's Inner Circle were trying to raise the protections around the relics again. Pyrrha's fists were clenched tightly as she resisted the urge to interrupt him.

Ruby's the one to speak first, responding when mentions 'Keeping the relics out of Her reach.' "You're talking about Salem, aren't you?"

"That's right. Not much is known about her, and quite frankly that's not what matters." Pyrrha mentally scoffs, recognizing that they have very different opinions on how much it 'matters' that they get to know anything about the monsters hunting them down. "What matters is she wants the relics, and if she gets them it won't end well."

Pyrrha's temper boils over as she puts together the pieces. Even after she was supposed to be brought in on this, chosen to be their sacrifice (her life, her soul, her identity put on the line) for Maidenhood, the Inner Circle still kept secrets from her. Gods and Relics. Salem as the 'true enemy'. The schools used as bait, the students, eager, bright-eyed, with dreams of being heroes, thrown out as fodder to protect their secrets. She can hear the faint sound of groaning from her metal as her semblance fluctuates out of control, bending her armor and weapons back and forth ever so slightly. She had _directly_ asked him about the school, and he just deflected, made her forget about it as he distracted her and continued on with his plans.

"Why should we accept what you say?" Her team members look shocked at Pyrrha's interruption (at how wild eyed and furious she looked), but Qrow just sighs resignedly and stare mournfully at his now empty flask. "How do we know that this 'Salem' really is evil and that you're one of the good guys with all the secrets you've been keeping from us?"

There's a long pause before Ren breaks the silence. "Pyrrha, I understand being upset at what has been kept from us, but…" Nora continues where he leaves off "Uh, did ya forget that Salem sent Tyrian to kidnap Ruby? I can't think that if she has guys like that working for her she's any type of good news" Nora shudders as she finishes remembering that.

Pyrrha glances over at Qrow. "Sorry" she says before she can stop the words flowing out of her mouth. She doesn't feel sorry, not really. He's (they, most likely, as Pyrrha has no belief that Glynda and Ironwood aren't doing the same as Qrow regarding this, as well as the other headmasters) been lying to everyone for years. Even after she thought they were telling them what was going on, even after Ozpin was dead, she _still_ found out there were secrets he was keeping from them. She did make a mistake in instantly believing the opposite of what he said, which was just as foolish. Pyrrha can't say for certain whether Cinder is working for Salem, she never heard the woman say that name, but she won't deny it as a serious possibility given Tyrian's words. The others might look upset, but they're still willing to trust Qrow's words, so Pyrrha tries to keep an open mind for now.

"If this is all true… why aren't we telling everyone about Salem?" Nora asks.

"Salem's insidious. She's been fighting from the shadows for years, influencing every level of society." Pyrrha's first thoughts are how that sounds _exactly_ like what Ozpin's group are doing. Qrow coughs a few times before continuing. "If we told everyone, well there'd be incredible amounts of panic and chaos. The chaos would invite Grimm and as things fell apart Salem would be poised to push things along and turn people against each other."

Ruby's grimacing but nodding her head. "I can get that, but why didn't you tell us about this?" Her silver irises lock onto Qrow's gaze "You could have just told us all this from the beginning, even traveled with us. Why didn't you trust us?"

"It's not that I didn't trust you-" Qrow's words are cut off by some harsh laughter from Pyrrha. He tries to speak to her but coughs again as Pyrrha cuts him off.

"That's a complete joke. You used us as bait, planted the idea to go to Haven in Ruby's head so we'd go out and lure in Salem's agents when they thought we were unguarded. You say you can't tell anyone about it because Salem would use it to spread chaos and confusion? But if that's the case, then why doesn't Salem reveal herself and make that chaos happen herself?" Ren and Nora were looking like they wanted her to calm down, but at that question they glance over at Qrow in askance.

"Look, I asked about revealing it several times too. You wouldn't believe how many times Ozpin told me no-" a bird cawed nearby seeming to distract Qrow for a moment.

"Maybe you should have told Ozpin no! Or fine, you did whatever he said, but he's dead now, so- No, no I'm not getting distracted with this again. You didn't answer my question of why _Salem_ isn't revealing it. You can't stop her minions from attacking us, so I don't believe you could stop her from telling everyone the truth if she wanted to. I have my own theory, and that's because it suits her purposes too. Salem might have plans on if she's revealed sure, whatever. The main thing is this little shadow feud you've got going on, it suits both yours and Salem's purposes. That's why neither of you have revealed the truth yet! I'm done being the good little girl that will do whatever you say, accept whatever garbage you feed us without thinking. I refuse to be your sacrifice again!" Pyrrha turned around and stomped out of the makeshift camp.

A/N: Another chapter title I'm not certain about, but it is relevant. Anyways, yeah, things are going to get angstier before they get better.


	9. Chapter 9 - Fraught Hearts

Ruby just stared dazed at Pyrrha and the anger she had displayed there. Throughout the entire story and conversation, Ruby could tell that she was angry, with a few snide comments here and there but at the end…

Qrow got up and gruffly said "I'm taking a walk" proceeding to amble away perpendicular to the direction Pyrrha had gone off to. Nora and Ren were exchanging glances with each other and Ruby didn't know their expressions well enough to determine any silent communication beyond 'pancake time', which didn't seem to be coming up in this case. Why was Pyrrha so mad at Qrow? Yes, he had to keep some secrets from them, but he had his reasons. He had to. Ruby believed in her uncle, and her teachers, that they were trying to do what's best.

Ruby stood up quickly "I'll talk to Pyrrha." Ren gave her an unsure look about it, but Ruby was determined. "I'm the leader of this team, so it's my job to find out what's upsetting her."

She moved at a quick jog, not running or using her Semblance, but trying to quickly make up the distance Pyrrha had already put between them. She was surprised to find that she didn't need to travel all that far, Pyrrha must have stopped pretty shortly after walking away. Pyrrha stood in a small clearing with her back turned to Ruby.

"What do you want Ruby?"

"To see how you're doing? To ask what's going on with you."

"I'm just responding to the bullshit they've thrown our way, for the first time in forever. So of course, there must be something wrong with me" Pyrrha says sarcastically. She snorts as she turns around to face Ruby. "I thought I had this great destiny and they used me. I said nothing, played the roles they gave me and found out there was even more they hid from us. Why do you even care Ruby, just let me be." She waved her off and moved to turn away, only to come face to face with her again as Ruby petal dashed in front of her.

"I care because I'm your friend, and your team leader. You're obviously hurting but you don't need to lash out. Qrow didn't have a choice on keeping that secret, don't take it out on him. Or me."

"Some team leader you are! You got your uncle injured with how sloppy you were."

Ruby grinds her teeth a bit angrily at that "I shot off Tyrian's tail! We were all outmatched by that guy, and Qrow was barely hurt by that. Besides, you used your Polarity on him too."

"You were all getting injured by him, that's why your 'dear uncle' told you to stay away. He meant 'don't get involved at all', and your word loophole only succeeded in getting him stung when he tried to save you." She pauses for a moment before raising her chin and adding "I interfered because I could handle it, because I'm better than you, better than anyone else. This isn't arrogance, just me accepting the truth that I've been told my whole life. Why do you think I didn't tell anyone about Cinder? I didn't want anybody to get hurt interfering." Ruby crossed her arms, not buying it.

"You can't take on everything by yourself. I get trying to protect others, that's why I'm a huntress, but you'll just get yourself hurt if you push everyone away. We aren't weak, Tyrian barely jabbed Qrow and we hurt him badly, and that's because we worked together. Alone he would have annihilated us, you included."

"If you think he's doing fine then you have another thing coming; Qrow's obviously getting worse, there must have been some powerful poison in that sting."

"What?" Ruby asks in a small voice, frantically putting the pieces together in her mind of Qrow's behaviour.

"Yup" Pyrrha says, in a tone that isn't quite a taunt but isn't kind either. "I bet that's the only reason he's telling us about any of this anyways. I guess he wanted to give us something before he kicked the bucket, even if that something was another attempt to get us to be his good little soldiers in the fight against Salem."

"No, we won't let that happen. The uh, the death" Ruby hastily clarifies. "We're going to work together and we'll get him to Haven before that can happen."

"He'll just slow us down, die and the delay will likely lead to the rest of us dying."

"Don't say that!"

"I'll say what I want. Like the fact that you shouldn't be leader if you keep on making decisions like this. First your uncle, who will be the next casualty of your poor choices. You aren't strong enough to be leader." Her tone and stance made it clear to Ruby as to who she thought the only person who was strong enough to be leader was.

"I am a good leader! I'm not perfect and I wasn't used to travelling like this at first, but I adapted well. I was strong enough to get into Beacon two years early and I've improved a lot since then. Ozpin said-"

Pyrrha sarcastically interrupts her "Oh, wow. If Ozpin likes your leadership then surely you must be amazing. Let me just get down to worship at your feet" Pyrrha put her hands above her and made mock bowing motions towards Ruby.

Ruby seethed but tried to calm down and get back on track. "Pyrrha, I know you're hurting, but you can't lash out at everyone because of it."

"You have no idea what it's like! No clue how much pain I'm in! Ozpin used us and because of that Jaune's dead!" Pyrrha's voice raises as she talks, by the end she's shouting loudly enough that Ruby's not sure there was any point to walking away from the camp. Ruby backs up slightly, somehow slightly shocked even though she had been expecting something like this.

Quickly she shakes that off and catches Pyrrha's gaze that's filled with anger and pain, her silver eyes matching it with steely resolve. "I know exactly what it's like to feel that way. My mother was amazing, as a mom and a huntress. And one day she didn't come back from a hunt. That was a hard day. It's still hard to remember some days, that she's gone and left me forever. But I can't let myself wallow in regret or lash out at others. She wanted to be a huntress, and I decided to be one too, and Jaune wanted to be a huntsman as well."

"Jaune didn't know enough! He wanted to be a hero, not die like that!" Pyrrha's eyes are wet with tears not yet shed, her hands grasping at nothing, as if she could hold him again. "You lost your mom when you were a little girl and barely knew her. He never wanted to die at the hands of a monster, I never _wanted_ to be Ozpin's chosen Maiden! I just wanted to hold the boy I love-"

"AND I NEVER WANTED YOU TO KILL PENNY!" Silence reigns eerily in the clearing for over a minute after she said that, Pyrrha looking more shocked than if Ruby had slapped her. Ruby had wanted to help out Pyrrha, but it looked like there were some things she needed to air out as well. She takes out Mechanical Rose, shifting it to sword form, causing Pyrrha's eyes to widen in fear for a moment before she hangs her head in resignation. Ruby plants the sword in front of the Mistralian warrior. "I'm not going to hurt you, I used this blade to save you back at the arena, remember?" She looks up, nodding slowly, though still obviously not getting it. "It sucks that they didn't trust us enough to let us know everything, but I think the people we lost still would have tried to help them fight. We all chose to be hunters; we knew the risks and we fought anyways. I know Penny would have wanted me to save you too, even after the accident." It hurts when Ruby remembers the accident, but this sword wasn't supposed to be a reminder of what she failed to do or how she was too late, but of the good times they shared together before that day. A way of carrying Penny with her, always, even as she kept going forward.

Ruby doesn't have the chance to express that as Pyrrha collapsed to the ground on her knees and started wailing, the anguish kept like a damn now somewhat literally flooding out. Ruby moves forward to comfort her when they both freeze up hearing a Beowolf howl and the sounds of combat off where the camp is.


	10. Chapter 10 - Beware the Nuckelavee

Chapter 10 – Beware the Nuckelavee, My Friends

Ruby dashes off towards the camp saying "We have to help them!" Pyrrha snapped back into focus, quickly deducing what had happened. Her negative emotions brought the Grimm in. She was such an idiot! There aren't any city walls or defences to protect them here and she just let her feelings spiral worse and worse, not even thinking about what would happen.

Pyrrha stood up and started running towards the camp, Ruby already out of sight having raced ahead of her. Pyrrha ducked past some low branches in her way and then dived to the side to avoid a black mass that crashed right through where she had been. It had been almost impossible to see past the trees and the dark night, only Pyrrha's highly honed battle senses warned her to avoid the creature in time. Whirling to face it with her spear drawn she saw that it was a particularly large Beowolf. Not quite an alpha, but larger and more armoured than most regular Beowolves. Pyrrha struck out a few times with her spear, testing it's defences, and the Grimm managed to ward off the blows as it waded in. It's movements were still clumsy, however, and Pyrrha was able to duck under it's swing while shifting Milo into Xiphos form and cutting deep into the creature's flank as she moved past it.

The Beowolf howled and shifted to cover that side, injured but not dead yet. Pyrrha took a single step to move in when she felt the ground quake beneath her. Jumping up as she used Polarity to send the shield from her back under her feet, she guarded herself against the Alpha Creep that lunged upwards from the ground. It hit her shield and launched her upwards, Pyrrha using the momentum to lift her over the Beowolf and attacking it from behind, slashing it twice as she fell. The Beowolf whirled around and tried to smash her aside, but Pyrrha saw the attack, pulling her shield up to her free arm and bracing herself to take the hit. The beast had plenty of power, but so did Pyrrha, and her skill let her use it better. The trees were hemming her in too much to move greatly around the creature or avoid the attacks, but it also kept the Beowolf in-between her and the Creep.

Or so she thought, while she was able to hold off the Beowolf's flailing, the Creep just charged straight through, killing the Beowolf and snapping it's jaw through the disintegrating beast to hit her, Aura flashing as it absorbed the blow. Pyrrha backed up raised her shield to block it's further attacks while jabbing at it with Milo in spear form, striking at the weak points in it's armor, pricking it repeatedly, but unable to land a decisive blow. The Creep tried going underground again, leading to Pyrrha pinning it's tail with it half buried underground. She heard the sounds of battle intensify over by the camp and knew she had to end this fast to help them.

The Alpha thrashes and rose up out of the ground, and Pyrrha meet it with her shield, bashing the creature's head twice and then once more with the edge of shield, cracking the left side of it's face plating. Pyrrha accepted the swipe it gave her with it's claw as she pulled her spear out of it's tail and through the Creep's head, slicing through the broken armor and out of the back of it's head.

With the enemies in her way dead, Pyrrha moved to the camp but found it empty of people, just filled with a few young Beowolves that were moving towards the muzzle flashes off to the side of the camp. Ruby and the others seemed to be there but Pyrrha could barely make them out from the mass of Grimm descending upon them. Most of them seemed to be Beowolves or Creeps but her night vision was nowhere near good enough to say those were the only ones. Pyrrha dispatched the young Beowolves with a few slices when she heard a bird cawing behind her. She thought it might be a Nevermore but couldn't see it when she turned. Her attention was caught by a tree being felled to make room for a new enemy in the clearing.

Her team was still some meters away, but Pyrrha readied her stance to deal with the more immediate threat she saw, bursting through the trees. It was a large equine Grimm with a humanoid body. It could be mistaken for a centaur at first before she realized the horse like head and neck were also attached to the body as well as the human like torso sticking up out the middle of it's body, like a rider and horse fused together. There's a small set of spikes running down it's human torso barely visible from her angle. It's bony plating took the form of ribs on both horse and human side, the lower horse jaw, and large mask with great curved horns on it's human head. It let out a piercing shriek upon seeing her that sent chills running down her spine (distantly she noted that it must have affected the others hearing it as well as the rate of fire slowed for a few moments after that). This was a Nuckelavee, a very powerful Grimm and likely the one that gathered in and 'led' so many others here. The ancient Grimm that Ren had warned them about a few hours ago, and in dire tones the likes of which Pyrrha had never heard from him before.

Pyrrha faced the creature and prepared herself. She knew that if it got to the mass of Grimm it would be able to make plans, use the other monsters, and kill her friends. This foe would be far cannier and wiser than the other Grimm attacking them, it might take Pyrrha a while to kill it before she could get to where the others were. The Mistralian waited, as did the Grimm, before it stretched it's arm towards her rapidly. Pyrrha ducked to the side, she hadn't known what the Nuckelavee could do, only having heard a few tales of the destruction a Grimm this type had dealt to towns nearby Haven (and it likely was the very same Grimm, it still having weapons from those settlements sticking out of it's back, not having bothered to remove them), but she knew it was old and would have more than just that trick ready.

She moved forward, her shield raised as it's other arm stretched towards her. It grabbed the shield and pulled it away, Pyrrha not fighting it's grip, just using the tug to get closer to it and stab it a few times before avoiding a swing from the first hand that snapped back and using Polarity on her breastplate to pull her away from a kick it aimed at her. The Grimm tossed away her shield, but she just gave a slight wave of her hand (she was getting better at not needing that, but it still did help) to send it flying at the back of it's head. She focused on dodging the arms and it charged towards her, the horse head swinging up to the left to crash down right towards her. Pyrrha leaped over it, ready to land a heavy slash that could deal some actual damage to the beast when it was distracted by the shield hitting the back of it's head, when suddenly the human torso flopped over.

Her attack was interrupted by this completely unexpected behaviour and Pyrrha barely managed to stop her own shield from hitting her in the face with it's intended target lying down under it. The Nuckelavee's left arm rose up and caught Pyrrha as she's falling, extending out to slam her into a tree. How? She wonders through the pain as the Grimm starts squeezing on her body, before it comes to her as she hears the horse head snort. Of course, the horse head saw the shield when it lifted up to swing at her. The creature is a Grimm, both of it's heads are important, she can't just focus on the humanoid parts. Her aura is dropping rapidly from it crushing her, she has to deal with that first. Her sword is still in her hand but pinned at an awkward angle to strike. Focusing everything on her semblance she raises here shield, spinning it rapidly before sending it flying into the Nuckelavee's arm, cutting deep into it like a buzz saw.

Howling, the Grimm lets go of her, Pyrrha landing on one knee and her free hand, charging forwards towards the Grimm almost instantly after landing. This creature isn't dumb, it uses the fast, extendable arms as the main threat to try and get anyone foolish enough to charge in, she can see it's clawed front feet tensing up at her approach. She couldn't just ignore the arms though, they were fast and strong, bound to catch her again if she kept her distance. She raced forward, as if to close the gap, and then when it feinted with it's arms, she reversed her momentum, diving back to strike at the arm that she had already hurt with her shield… only for the blow to barely do anything. It backhanded her aside, and though she rolled with it, her Aura still took a fair amount of damage.

This Grimm was strong, but more importantly too tough. She can easily see now how such a creature could have led to the destruction of Ren's village. Her weapons were better suited for accurate low damage attacks, not heavy wilder strikes like Mechanical Rose or Magnhild could deliver. She glanced over at the others fighting over just thirty meters away. The Grimm were still swarming them, but she could see more glimpses of them through the remaining trees and horde of darkness. They were carving their way through, protecting each other. She saw Qrow slice through two Ursi and then falter, clutching his wound. Before a Deathstalker could move in and finish him off, Nora batted it away with her hammer. Ruby and Ren fought back to back, whirling dervishes of death each of them, cutting apart the younger Grimm and causing the older ones to back off.

They had the situation in hand over there, but if she brought the Nuckelavee over there, they could die. Someone at least would likely die, even if they had the tools and skills to take it down, and Pyrrha wouldn't let that happen. She'd make sure that this creature never got to hurt her teammates ever again, no matter the cost. She noticed the Nuckelavee looking the same way and turned Milo to rifle mode, firing her shots off at it's two heads. It's gaze snapped back to her and it let out an even worse howl, the spines on it's back growing as it's body spasmed. The howl felt like it was attacking her very being, but for some reason she wasn't as affected this time. She switched Milo to javelin form and launched it through the creature's neck. The blow didn't seem to hurt it nearly as much as it would have a human, but it at least got it to stop screaming and just eye her maliciously. Pyrrha pulled Akouo back to her and moved around to attack it from the side. At the same time she reached out with her hands to direct her spears (and they were her spears as much as they were sticking out of the creature's back, any metal in her vicinity was her weapon) to rip them out of it's flesh and send them into the arms that stretched out towards her. They didn't have enough force to pin them or even really do much damage against the Grimm, but they do knock it's arms off course. Before Pyrrha can capitalize on that, the Nuckelavee has rapidly spun around to angle it's back towards her, one of it's cloven feet rising up to kick her from behind.

Pyrrha barely manages to raise her shield in time, and even that only serves to slow the mule kick down, not stop it as it breaks through Akouo and hits her, sending her flying back against a tree. (Dimly, she notes that her shield arm is starting to swell, and if she lives through the fight, it will likely hurt incredibly. For now though, her arm still obeys her directions, which is all that matters.) She manages to recover fast enough to avoid it's arm coming in to grab her again, but she doesn't have a chance to counterstrike as she regains her balance. That was a lesson in not underestimating it's speed. The Nuckelavee could seem to lumber about at times but it could actually spin around pretty quickly when it needed to, giving it a better range with it's back legs than expected. The Nuckelavee turns around quickly, so as not to give her an opportunity to strike at it's flank, but Pyrrha doesn't even bother with that, just using the moment to pull Milo out of it's throat. It makes a hissing sound, but doesn't move to attack her immediately, just keeping an eye on her as it starts to walk away, facing her team.

She can't beat this creature, but she can fight it defensively, buy them more time. Like… like Ozpin did. Like how Qrow is fighting for her friends right now. She might still be angry (more than a little bit) at the secrets they kept, but she can see now that they still fought, the same as her. They didn't set her up as a pawn to be discarded, Ozpin even told her and Jaune to run from Cinder. Instead of using the time he bought for them and getting to safety, she went back in and dragged Jaune in with her. It was foolish and it cost her the life of the boy she loved, but she won't make that mistake again. Her negative emotions brought this Grimm here, the least she can do is buy time for everyone else.

Reloading her gun, she moves around the clearing, directing her broken Akouo to smash into it's heads repeatedly. The damage isn't great, but it keeps it's attention on her. The Nuckelavee is sending it's arms at her as she moves, the motions fast but obvious, barely missing her as she raises her gun and fires, this time directing all of the strikes to it's left humanoid eye. The combined force pierces it's hateful orb and causes it to wheeze out. The arms are flying more rapidly now, knocking away the broken piece of metal that was once Akouo. They lash out towards Pyrrha, mostly missing her but clipping her a few times. She had no time to check her scroll whatsoever, but she knew she could feel her Aura dipping from the hits she had taken and her semblance use.

She looked up at the Grimm, staring at it's three remaining eyes, and she could tell it was too late for her. The Invincible Girl would fall, and the Nuckelavee would descend upon Ren and Nora and- No. NO. She may have been foolish enough to think she could beat the beast by herself, but her loss would be the only one her friends would be burdened with. Her end didn't mean she couldn't at least land one more crippling blow on the beast, something that would let the other hunters take it down in turn.

It was hard to tell it's injuries from the constantly rising faint black shroud that seemed to come off from the creature, but she remembered the arm her shield had cut into. She backed away from that arm as it missed her, turning towards it as she shifted the rifle into her sword. Pyrrha hurled her blade at the arm, enhancing it's speed with Polarity, the blade a gold and red blur as it cut clean through the creature's hand, the arm snapping back like a broken elastic band. Before she can exult too much in her victory it's remaining arm grabs on to her and smashes her against one of the remaining trees. Idly, Pyrrha notes that most of the others around the camp clearing have been broken by the Grimm. She also recognizes, in that same detached manner, as it squeezes that her bones are starting to crack, which must mean her Aura is fully broken.

Pyrrha's head drifts to the side and she catches a glimpse of Ruby scything her way through the Grimm in between her and Pyrrha, but there are still too many of the creatures between them, the Beowloves rushing in almost as fast as they are killed. Pyrrha gets pulled towards the horse mouth, the skeletal jaw opening up to reveal too sharp teeth. Pyrrha thought she was ready for this, that she had given up any hope of living through this, but as she's placed within the Grimm's jaws some survival instinct kicks in. She struggles, twisting and turning to break free of it's grip, to no avail. It's hand lets go and the teeth begin to close down on her when Ruby screams out "NO!" Silver light bursts out of her eyes and something incredible happens. It's like a wave sweeping outward, the Grimm disintegrating at it's touch, the Nuckelavee is the only one not instantly destroyed by the light, petrified instead. Everyone nearby is shocked still, a nearby raven even falling out of flight in shock the only sound that's made for a moment. Until trembling cracking sounds start coming from the stone Nuckelavee, the plates shifting and breaking, the creature within trying to escape it's stone cocoon.

Qrow dashes in, shattering the stone instantly and cutting the creature in half with one swing of his scythe. He moves over to catch Pyrrha as she falls, no longer held aloft as the Grimm disintegrates. It's a very nice gesture on his part, but utterly ruined by him collapsing instantly after grabbing her, his wound catching up to him. Pyrrha's feeling pretty weak herself, but she works to pick herself up off of him and sees that he's paler than usual and there's a nasty purple discoloration on his bandages. "That's… not a good sign." Understatement of the century.

Pyrrha doesn't have much time to focus on that when she sees Nora and Ren run towards them, Nora carrying Ruby in her arms. Ruby doesn't look injured or dead, just appearing to be unconscious. Just like she was back at Beacon, when she destroyed the gigantic Wyvern. They've survived somehow, but they weren't out of the woods yet.


	11. Chapter 11 - Looking Up

Chapter 11 – Looking Up

Ruby blearily opened her eyes to look around her surroundings, the road bobbing up and down slightly. Huh? She turned her head and saw that she was being carried by Ren, who was panting heavily. He looked her in the eye and dropped her, surprise and weariness causing him to lose his grip on her, though his reflexes were good enough to turn that into a slide down that let Ruby land on her feet.

"Wha-" she half asks before everything that happened comes rushing back to her. The Grimm swarming them, everyone else was low on Aura, Ren was right out, Qrow was in bad shape, wobbling a few times, dozens of them had been slain, but more were moving in even as it was getting easier to see the rest of the forest past them. Pyrrha was helpless, about to be eaten by that monster and she had… she had used her silver eyes again. She still didn't know how she did it exactly, but in that moment she had just felt sure that she was able to use it, and she was.

Taking a proper look around she saw that they were on a road, some distance away from the forest they had been camping in. It was hard to tell in the darkness of night how far away it was, but at least she had enough light from the stars and the broken moon to see her friends. Nora up ahead turning to look at back at her, Qrow hoisted upon her back. Ren was looking at her concerned asking "Are you alright?" To which she nodded at him. Behind Ren she saw Pyrrha awkwardly jog up to her. Pyrrha's armor was dented in places, her bracers and tiara scratched, her usually vibrant red hair dulled by dirt and with a couple twigs sticking out of it, but she was alive. Pyrrha gave her a hug that was ginger, which meant she was probably still sore from the fight with that elder Grimm, but she didn't have any major wounds on her or anything bandaged up that Ruby could see.

"You're alive" Pyrrha whispered to her as if she couldn't believe it. Ruby laughed and hugged her back, trying to be careful not to squeeze her too hard.

"I should be the one saying that, you almost got eaten by that horse-person Grimm thingy!" Ruby said as she saw Nora come closer with her uncle. Qrow was groaning, looking almost like he'd had too much to drink (which Ruby knew to be a whole lot) but worse somehow. At first she had thought that he had been knocked unconscious which is why Nora was carrying him, but now it was looking like something else. Turning to Ren she says "Tell me what happened."

"So, after we fought back that huge horde of Grimm and the Nucklathingy" "Nuckelavee" "Right, after Qrow destroyed it, he just keeled over?" All three of the others have been looking at Ruby with a look of awe. Pyrrha had been pretty distracted by Jaune's death at Beacon, so she guessed this was the first time they had all really seen what her Silver Eyes could do. Ren and Nora though, there seemed to be something more, especially whenever the Nuckelavee was mentioned, Ruby just couldn't figure out what it was.

All of them are sitting down, their backpacks used as makeshift back supports as they sit on the side of the road. Not good for actually sleeping, but the others need a moment to recover their Aura and gain back some stamina (it had only been 15 minutes of carrying her apparently, but that and the fight before it had really drained Ren). Pyrrha hesitantly responds "It was his blood, it… it doesn't look good." Rolling Qrow over slightly from where he's lying, Ruby can see the purple splotches on his bandages.

"Oh no. How is he doing?" Ruby hears Qrow coughing a bit and he seems so… frail. Qrow's always been her teacher, always there to pull her out of any serious danger when she was young, one of her heroes, second only to Summer in her mind. To see him like this, it was upsetting for Ruby on many levels, like something fundamentally wrong.

Nora grimaces slightly "It's not looking good. He needs proper medical treatment, something to deal with that venom."

Ruby turned to Pyrrha with wide eyes "I'm so sorry."

Pyrrha blinks in surprise "Whatever are you sorry for? It was my negative emotions that drew in the Grimm. I… I was so, so, sooo wrong about you. I nearly ruined everything, but you were the one to save us."

"No, I was too reckless. If I hadn't been Qrow would be fine and then-"

"How about ya both stop feeling bad for each other before we get even more Grimm on our hands?" Qrow speaks up, coughing a few times.

"Uncle Qrow!" "Mister Branwen, are you ok?" "Do you need anything?"

He turns to Ren as he tries to sit up, getting only far enough to slouch with his back slightly upraised against a bed roll. "Some gin would be nice but failing that I'll take some water." Ren passes him a waterskin which the Hunter almost drops before Ren just lifts it up to give him a drink before taking it back away. "Right, so I don't know how long I have, so I better fill you in on a couple of important details I didn't get the chance to before." He gives a slightly apologetic nod to Pyrrha "You're right to be angry with me-" "No, I was-" "-But I need you to really listen to me now. I'll tell you everything I know, but we might now get another chance."

"Sorry" slips out of Pyrrha's mouth before she just nods at him to go on.

"Alright" he huffs a few times before continuing. "The first thing you need to know, is that Ozpin is alive."

"WHAT!" Or some variation of that cry goes up from Ruby and everybody else. Qrow gives them a stare that can't quite be called a glare, not enough energy behind it, but they get the picture

"He's alive… in a manner of speaking. If you haven't figured it out yet, Ozpin was the wizard who made the 4 Maidens. He reincarnates every time he dies, his soul passing on to inhabit and share another body. If I'm not… around… you need to look for him. Lionheart should have more details on how to locate him, but it's gonna take some searching." Ruby was rocked by this news. While no one had shown a body to confirm his death, Cinder's emergence from the tunnels without him had led everyone to believe he was gone. Which in a way, Ruby guessed was true, but in an even more important way it wasn't. Ozpin could help tell them what to do about the Relics, and Cinder, and Salem, and everything else. Even Pyrrha seemed uplifted to hear that the legendary huntsman/headmaster was out there.

"There's been some, uh, discrepancies about Lionheart's actions and Cinder's enrollment. Just… be wary when talking to him." His breath is coming in more ragged now. "Sorry about bringing this all down on you. It's why I didn't travel with you before. My semblance, it brings bad luck."

Ruby can't help herself from speaking up here "Wait, isn't your semblance turning into a Crow? I've seen you do it before." She thinks she hears Pyrrha mutter something about '..that's where the feathers come from'.

"I was named after my semblance, but it was from how crows are often seen as a sign of ill omen. Ozpin gave me and Raven a tiny bit of his power, to let us turn into birds." How old was Qrow when he was named? And who would name him like that? Ruby's wondered about his past before, which he's always deflected, but it's even more glaring now. Who waits until their child has unlocked their semblance to name them?

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to… to put you all in danger. I'm sure you'll all do great without m-"

"No! Uncle Qrow, you aren't going to die! We're, we're going to get you some medicine and you'll be all better soon. We just have to make it to a town…" Ruby's voice breaks and her words die off as she desperately tries to convince Qrow that he'll survive. Qrow seems unconvinced, his words starting to slur.

"It's too far away, with you lot all banged up… no way Raven will help me now… you're good kids…"

He starts to drift into unconsciousness when Pyrrha grabs everyone's attention with a piercing question.

"Mr. Branwen can you still turn into a bird? If you can, with Ruby's speed, she could save you." Qrow's eyes open in surprise before he grins.

"Yeah, I just might be able to do that." He focuses and in an instant a wounded crow is lying in his place. Ruby has no idea where his clothes or weapons 'go' when he transforms, but when Ruby gently picks Qrow feels so light, even lighter than she thought he'd be for that size. She passes him over to Ren to bandage his wound again. Qrow doesn't move much throughout the process, just lightly twitching, seeming unconscious again.

"Pyrrha, thank you so much. With this I can run Qrow to safety. He even feels light enough that I can lift him when I use my semblance and turn to rose petals (I don't have much strength like that, but he's really, really light)." Pyrrha seems shocked at Ruby's thanks.

"It was my fault that… look, you're the one who saved me, saved all of us." Pyrrha takes a deep breath "You were right and I was wrong. I was so caught up in being angry, in being so certain of myself, and I lashed out at everyone else. When I couldn't see the problem was me." The last line is far quieter than the other, barely hearable to Ruby. "But things will be different now. I'll follow your lead."

"You saved us too, you know. You were holding that Grimm off us for a long time." Ruby's glad to see that Pyrrha is a bit more stable now, though she doesn't want her to depreciate her own actions. "And it wasn't like you were the only one drawing Grimm there."

"When your uncle recovers, can you tell him I'm sorry?" Pyrrha asks Ruby. "For my anger towards him, the Grimm" she cuts off looking even more apologetic towards Ruby, Ren, and Nora. "For my hypocrisy in keeping secrets from you guys and being mad at him for doing the same."

"You can tell him yourself soon enough, right?" Ruby asks as she takes the newly bandaged Qrow from Ren. Pyrrha might not be angry anymore, but Ruby doesn't want her pulling anymore stunts like she did against the Nuckelavee and putting her life in danger again, and she makes those thoughts clear to Pyrrha with a look.

"Ah, yes, we'll meet up with you soon enough. We'll be safe, I promise, just a bit slower than you."

Nora chimes in "And once Reny is feeling rested he can cover us with his semblance." She's leaning over him, looking like her usual bubbly self, but the two of them exchange a look and both adopt a more serious expression. "I know you have to run off now, so we won't take long but…"

Ren picks up for her "… Thank you for ending the Nuckelavee." How they say that, something clicks, and Ruby remembers Ren talking about that Grimm before Tyrian attacked them, about how dangerous that one ancient Grimm that wiped out Ren's village… She's stunned for a moment having trouble finding the words to respond.

Ruby's glad to help people, and especially her teammates, but she isn't great with such awe, for lack of a better word. She nods and says "I just did what I could. I'm glad I could help." Ruby stands up and begins her run towards Mistral.

The journey is a tiring one, going as fast as she can up the mountain path. Her semblance can let her go fast and she does use it to boost her speed, but she knows if she tried to race there using only her semblance she'd be exhausted long before she could make it. Pacing it out, especially for the trickier parts of the mountain made the journey a lot easier. It would have been next to impossible to carry her uncle in human form, but as a bird it was pretty much like running unencumbered for Ruby, and there was an actual path that had been beaten up the mountain, which was mostly consistent.

The path she went up led to a cave full of weapons scattered throughout it. She was feeling a little spooked by this, the cave had an eerie feel to it. She was careful as she moved through it, following the wind that rushed through for a path to the summit, ready for any ambush. Ruby knew the cave must be occupied by a Grimm, and an old one to have collected so many weapons, and it was only when she got halfway through the chamber that she recognised some of the hoof markings and claw scratches on the ground. This was the Nuckelavee's den.

Ruby was happy to know that there wasn't another ancient Grimm waiting in the cave to attack here but didn't feel relaxed until she passed through the cave fully and reached exited through the opening leading to the summit. Qrow was twitching in her hands and she worried as she flew up the rocky cliff. Would she make it in time? How far away was Haven? And then she saw it as she looked over the top of the mountain.

The sight of Mistral floored her. Buildings of white stone and brown roofs sticking out all around the lush mountain, bridges covering the gaps where a giant waterfall flowed through, and at the top, lightly obscured by the clouds, a giant building with a tower piercing up past it. Haven academy, the sun rising behind it. She'd made it! Pumping her free fist in the air she felt invigorated. She only had to run down this mountain, across the short road in between the two mountains, and Qrow would be safe.

Ruby ran faster than she ever had before, racing down the slope. She only tripped up a few times in her haste and was able to use her semblance to recover each time, pushing herself even further. She made it an entrance up to Mistral by noon.

It took a bit of asking around to find a doctor, but that was a bit problematic in itself.

"What do you mean you won't look at him? He's dying!" Ruby said shoving her uncle in the doctor's face.

She reeled back from Qrow "I am a human doctor, and I mostly deal with rangers and hunters who've suffered too serious wounds for there aura. Find a vet to deal with your… pet."

"He is a huntsman. He got stung by a scorpion faunus and poisoned and I needed to run him here so he used his semblance to turn into a bird! Now can you help him?"

The doctor seems bewildered by what Ruby's saying but after a moment she comprehends what the young huntress is saying and tentatively holds out her hands to accept Qrow.

"I'll do what I can young lady, but you better not be pulling my le-" she's cut off by Qrow turning back to human form right then, knocking her down and pinning her under him.

Qrow still seems a little out of it, saying "Hey, who's the cutie?" His eyes have barely opened to see the woman underneath him. She's struggling but can't seem to move him.

"I'm so sorry about, here let me" Ruby says as she pulls him off, and then with the Doctor's help takes him onto a table before she gets told to wait outside.

The wait isn't very long. While her uncle doesn't look much different than before, Ruby's been assured he's been given an antidote that while help stop the poison. Combined with some medicine she's given (and strict bed rest orders for Qrow for the next week) Ruby's assured that he'll make a full recovery.

By the time she's gotten a room for her and her Uncle (and reserved a room for the rest of her team) it's almost sunset. Getting a nice room near the entrance to the upper part of the mountain for everyone took a bit of time, but it'd be a good place to rest. She called the team and it sounded like things were going well with them, they'd be there in a day or so. With her fears settled and things looking to be back on track Ruby sat down at the desk in her room and started writing her letter to Yang.


	12. Chapter 12 - Good foot forward

Chapter 12 – Good foot forward, but two steps back

Pyrrha put their things down as Ren and Nora collapsed in the room. With Ren's semblance (and the vast amount of Grimm cleared out of the nearby area), they had been able to make it through the wilderness and to Mistral unmolested. Relatively at least, a few unarmored Beowolves were so laughably not a threat they hadn't even slowed stride as they slew them on their way.

The journey itself was rougher than any Grimm they fought, the mountain proving a bit tiresome of an obstacle, especially since Pyrrha and Nora had to remain in contact with Ren the whole time for his semblance to keep them safe. Towards the end, with Ren's failing stamina (something to be worked on), the two of them had been helping lift him around the perilous terrain.

Pyrrha had been worried about Ruby on their journey, how she was going to make it through this on her own, while carrying her uncle (even as a bird, which still felt weird). These doubts magnified when they came across that horrible cave. Even knowing the Nuckelavee was dead and gone, this place made her skin crawl. Ren and Nora dealt with it in a… different manner. Ren had showed more emotion than she had expected, breaking off from the group to smash the 'trophies' the Grimm had collected over time and shout about how it was 'dead, dead, dead!' Nora just glared at the place and huddled in closer on herself before eventually going over and placing a hand on Ren's shoulder. With their dimmed emotions, the three of them quickly left the place without any further outbursts. Not that Pyrrha blamed them, she could easily get how they felt, and she hoped that going through there and having seen the creature die, they could now move past any buried pain they once had. It wasn't good to hold on to things like that.

Ruby's message as they headed down the other side of the mountain set their hearts at ease. The rest of the journey sapped their strength further, but Pyrrha felt invigorated by the hope she knew was waiting at the end.

And now, her team (sans Ruby, off in the next room over, looking after her Uncle; they had talked for a moment before Pyrrha, Nora, and Ren left to unpack) were staring at her with questions they had been waiting the entire journey to ask. Maybe even longer for some, and Pyrrha owed them some good answers.

"I… don't really know how to begin except to say that I'm sorry." Pyrrha hangs her head down as she talks to them, not willing to look them in the eyes just yet.

"For?" Ren prompts

"Well, for not telling you about the Maidens, for attracting all the Grimm there with my negative emotions."

"That's not what we're upset about" Nora says. Pyrrha chances a glance up and sees both of them with a mixture of worry and concern. "We're upset because you tried to take it all on by your own. Why'd ya try to leave us out of all this?"

"We're your team, you know you can trust us right?" Ren's question is softer spoken than Nora's, but it hits harder.

"Of course I can trust you, I never doubted either of you-"

"Then why didn't you tell us what you were going through?" Nora asked.

"We tried to give you space because that's what we thought you needed, but back at the forest…" Ren's voice trails off and she sees how distraught the usually stoic man is.

"You were going to _die_ fighting the Nu-" Nora stumbles over the word a few times before spitting it out. "The Nuckelavee was going to kill you, and you didn't even try to get help!" Before Pyrrha can raise any defense Nora continues "We saw you trying to hold it off, to keep it away from us when… Pyrrha, we knew that look in your eyes. Of complete despair, giving up."

"I haven't given up-!" Pyrrha cuts herself short. It's true, she hasn't, she still wants to pay back Cinder for what she's done, is trying to sort out what her destiny will be now and then one day achieve it, but in that moment in the forest she had. "I couldn't bear to see you get hurt-"

"Didn't you think we'd feel the same way?"

Pyrrha shouts over Ren "Of course I did, I was being selfish!" The room is silent for a moment as Pyrrha regains her composure. "I thought I could handle it at first, and when it became obvious the Grimm was too much for me… I still didn't want to risk you two. Ren, Nora, I'm deeply, truly sorry. For what I've done and how much I've kept from the both of you. In the future, I'm going to make a real effort to be more open with you two (and Ruby, all of my team)." Qrow can suck it, Pyrrha feels no need to open up to him. "Please, I need to ask you: if I ask you to leave a battlefield, will you do so? I know both of you can fight, and are willing to, but… Salem, Maidens, guys like Tyrian, all of this, it's way more than you were ever asked to take on." Pyrrha straightens up, standing taller as she looks directly at them. "Not to disparage your skills, but my own have simply been honed further." That and her prodigal nature do indeed make her a better fight than them. "If you fight in a situation like that, you'd be in more danger, which could distract me." This is unfair to ask of them, but she needs to know that when she fights Cinder that madwoman won't ever have the chance to kill a remaining member of Team Juniper. "You're my dear teammates and I can't lose you like I lost Jaune. Please, I only ask that in the worst battles imaginable, you'll find somewhere safe." She knows that means that they'll likely try to find somewhere from the edges of the battlefield to attack from, but Pyrrha thinks that'll will be enough. With their skill and her own, any threat will have difficulty reaching them.

"Only if you promise to share what's bothering you" Nora demands, pointing a finger far too close to Pyrrha's face (though Pyrrha isn't too perturbed by it, long having gotten used to Nora's lack of the concept of personal space).

"I promise, no more bottling things up."

Ren says "That's all we ask" as he gets up from where he'd been sitting on the bed. The three of them move closer for a group hug and Pyrrha sighs in relief. She's glad that they agreed to her request, and relieved for the reminder that she can lean on her friends when things get bad mentally. She had been trying to deal with that all on her own, and she had done poorly, to say the least. But she wasn't alone.

The next week as they waited for Qrow to recover were spent relaxing themselves. Pyrrha got the chance to show them some of the sights of Mistral, both the tourist-y ones and the less known about ones (there was a meditation garden that Ren seemed to fall in love with instantly). They got to see one of Pyrrha's favorite plays, _The Masked Queen_. It had a lot of elements of honor, drama, and a fair bit of romance, mixed in with a few action scenes. Her team wasn't quite as enthralled as she was, but they enjoyed it nonetheless, even Ruby, whose attention was prone to wandering for anything slower paced than a video game.

There were some overpriced trinkets Ruby bought to send to Weiss and Yang. She bought a four-leaf clover for Blake, a little good luck that she'd give to the cat faunus when she saw her again some day. After what Ruby had said happened at the Battle for Beacon, Pyrrha would be surprised if Blake ever crossed paths with them again, especially here in Mistral, where rumors abounded about the White Fang stirring. Ruby held on to her optimism though, it was an admirable trait of hers.

All in all, it was a good time spent recuperating mentally and physically from their long journey across Anima. They were on a mission though, and by the time the week was up Pyrrha was eager for Qrow to take them to Haven, a step closer to stopping Salem's plans and taking down Cinder.

Qrow lead them through his little route, but it was one Pyrrha had seen once before. Still, it wasn't the usual route one took up the mountain, but undeniably scenic. While it was still fun to travel through the tunnel, it was more interesting to see the awe in the faces of her team as they exited it. Even for Ren, who had once lived so close to the city, this section must have seemed like an exotic place.

Pyrrha walked with her team (and Qrow) to the grounds of haven academy. It looked as austere as it ever had, the wooden halls and old-fashioned lanterns giving the place a relaxing feeling of home that Pyrrha was glad for. And yet, something about the school was off putting to her. She couldn't quite place it yet, the buildings looked the same and there wasn't anything that screamed 'danger', but something felt off nonetheless.

"It's kinda quiet here" Ruby says, picking up on the situation, or possibly on the tension in Pyrrha herself.

"Well, it's summer, they students must be gone for the break." Nora's words make sense and seem to put the others at ease, but Pyrrha can't help but raise her questions out loud.

"It shouldn't be this quiet though. There's no one here. No teachers, no students, not even any janitors!" It seems like a silly point, but it's true. Some maintenance staff should be needed, the place can't be this deserted, not without someone intentionally depopulating it. "Ren, Nora, you can't have been the only ones who" Pyrrha pauses for a moment as she tries to phrase their situation delicately "Wouldn't have somewhere else to go during the break. I've been here in previous years, and while it wasn't on break, I can't imagine that it could be this quiet, even on break."

It had seemed so lively when she had been invited here after her second tournament win, and then later right before she went to Beacon. Part of that was probably on purpose, Professor Lionheart was trying to 'sell' his school to her, convince her to join when the time came. Even if she and her parents had never found the man himself very impressive, his school had seemed lively, to say the least.

"Uncle Qrow, should we be worried?" Ruby asks, her hand drifting down to her weapon. Her uncle's stance (which Pyrrha now realized wasn't so much relaxed as it was loose, ready to move) shifted a bit as he waved her down.

"It is very quiet, but I can't think of anything dangerous that could cause this without getting a lot of attention." Pyrrha had seen the streets below were as happy as ever, this didn't appear to be some kind of overt attack. "Still, I said there were a couple things up with Lionheart, so… keep em close if not drawn."

They entered the halls of the school feeling more nervous now. Ren was using his semblance slightly to put a 'chill' on everyone's mood. It couldn't fully hide someone from the Grimm, but it was a trick he'd learned to stop everyone's hands from twitching nearby their weapons and ensure they wouldn't draw any extra attention from the creatures of Grimm. It felt weird, not fully stopping the emotions, just damping them a little, but it was very useful here.

They came to the Headmaster's office, the doors closed and Qrow said "Something's not right" drawing Harbinger as he spoke. All four of the younger warriors copied his lead almost instantly, readying their weapons (Pyrrha only has Akouo, Milo still in need of repair from the Nuckelavee battle). Qrow kicked down the door revealing Lionheart, standing just behind the door. They took each other in for a split second before Lionheart started screaming and fell backwards, which caused them to scream as well (Pyrrha stopped her screaming the fastest but still berated herself mentally for a moment over getting surprised at seeing… the guy they came to see).

"Qrow, what the hell are you doing? Uh, and Miss Nikos?" The lion faunus is looking a bit fearfully at her weapon. She retracts it right away.

"I'm sorry" she says as she offers him a hand up, which he takes.

"What the hell am I doing? What are you doing, Lionheart? You were supposed to meet us at the entrance half an hour ago!" Qrow practically growls out as the other three sheepishly put away their weapons.

Professor Lionheart blinks twice before pulling out a pocket watch. "Is it really… I lost track of the time, my apologies. I've just been so busy."

"Yeah, I'll bet." Qrow snorts derisively while gesturing around to the empty building. Pyrrha keeps her composure, but internally is agreeing vehemently with the raggedy old hunter.

"I've been busy, as you well know…" he pauses as he looks over at Pyrrha and her friends before continuing on a different track "Well, I've had a lot to do-"

"We know, that's why we're here, to talk to you about the relic you're supposed to be guarding." At those words Lionheart's eyes bulge so much while looking at Team River (Ruby is slowly but surely winning her over to that name) that Pyrrha's worried they might pop out.

"Qrow, the children" he stammers out before Qrow waves him off and enters his office. Ruby stands a few feet behind her uncle, Nora and Ren sit by a couch and Pyrrha stands beside a chess table with only one chair beside it. The holographic game states that the 'other player has been disconnected'.

"They know. You already know Pyrrha, these are Nora Valkyrie, Lie Ren, and Ruby Rose" Qrow says gesturing to all of them in turn. "Now let's get to talking." He puts away his flask (Pyrrha hadn't even seen him draw it!) and stands by the Headmaster's desk. Lionheart invites the rest of them inside.

"Why is there no one guarding the relic?" Qrow asks again.

Lionheart's face is frustrated as he answers "Beacon was not the only one affected by your attack. Atlas has closed it's boarders, who knows what's going on in Jimmy's head." Lionheart shakes his own before continuing. "Beyond a potential Dust shortage, Mistral has been in a state of panic ever since. I've been sending out every hunter I can, but we're barely holding back the increased Grimm attacks the panic brings. The school has been closed for the time being until things calm down."

"'Our attack'?" Qrow paraphrases with a raised eyebrow. "The infiltrators, Salem's minions, came from your school."

Lionheart's face falls at that "Yes, I know. After the attack I looked into their transcripts more thoroughly and found they had faked them." Just like Jaun- No. Pyrrha quashed that thought firmly in her mind. Cinder was** nothing** like Jaune. She heard a warping sound over the gnashing of her teeth and looked around before realizing that it was her hands (and her semblance given the faint black outline) that had twisted the metal of a chair she was standing by. Lionheart was looking at her very fearfully again, like he was wondering if she was going to attack him.

"I- I'm sorry, I truly am." He whispers out before Pyrrha let's her hands hang by her side and twists the metal back into shape with her semblance.

"I'm the one who should be sorry. Please forgive my rudeness, Headmaster." There's a moment where she thinks he's about to talk, his face seems more aggrieved than she's ever seen it, but then his eyes go distant. Whatever he's remembering he snaps out of it quickly and regains his composure quickly, talking like everything is normal again, even though she can tell he's sweating worse than before. Pyrrha hadn't thought that she had scared him that badly, but it's too late to say anything more, and he's at least skilled enough at acting to pretend that things are fine enough to the others.

"Ah, Qrow, it's not like it matters that the Hunters are gone, without the Spring Maiden this is all pointless."

"Why is the Spring Maiden important? I thought we were talking about the Relic?" Ruby asks, causing Lionheart to fix Qrow with a look.

"I thought you told them everything?"

"I told them… most things. It's been pretty busy" Qrow says as his left hand absently scratches the wound Tyrian gave him. "I gave them most of the relevant details, I just haven't caught them up on everything yet."

Lionheart adopts his 'professor voice' as he answer's Ruby's questions "Miss Rose, the Relics are guarded by more than just brave men and women, they are also magically protected. Only a Maiden can open the vault each one is hidden in, and only a specific Maiden for each school. Spring was a bright young girl, dedicated when she first gained her powers, but over time, well it got to be too much and she ran off." He looks like he can sympathize with her over that before he turns to Qrow. "And since I don't know where the she is that makes this all pointless."

"I know where she is." Lionheart boggles at his simple words.

"That's great news… wait, you are hardly ever the bearer of good news. What's the catch?"

Qrow presses some buttons on Lionheart's scroll lying on his desk, and brings up a map of Mistral. Scrolling in he places a marker on it, in the wilderness but near several small settlements. "She's there, the Spring Maiden is with the Branwen bandit tribe. She's working for Raven now."

"Yang's mom?" Ruby questions, to which Qrow just nods. There's… a lot that can be unpacked from those statements regarding Qrow's past and family (and enough that makes Pyrrha want to follow up with Ruby on that conversation they had about their families sometime), but she focuses on what's being said right now.

"This is still excellent, with your help I can arrange a mission to retrieve her in a couple weeks." 'Retrieve' sounds so much better than kidnap, since it doesn't sound like this girl is being held against her will. Pyrrha gets how important this is though, and it's hard to muster up sympathy for someone abandoning their destiny, not now that she's seen the terrible costs when she merely hesitated in regard to her own.

"Are you not hearing me? We don't have that kind of time Leonardo. Salem's agents are moving in, we need to go now."

"And you don't understand the pressure I'm under!" Lionheart shouts back at him, slamming his hands on the desk. "Until I can convince the Council your needs are greater than theirs, they'll keep every hunter out in the field that they can. So it will take a few weeks until I can get you the help you need."

Qrow sighs and says "Fine" before grabbing Lionheart's scroll and saving the location and exchanging numbers with his own. "Stay in touch, Leo." Pyrrha hides her small grin at how weird it sounds to hear 'Headmaster Lionheart' referred to by his first name. The team heads back with Qrow to the safehouse he's got them using, wondering what their next move will be.


	13. Chapter 13 - School's out for Summer

Chapter 13 – School's out for Summer, but Class is in session

Ruby's reading through the latest issues of X-Ray and Vav (she was way behind since she went on this journey) when her door suddenly bursts open. "Can't a girl read her comics in peace!" She cries out, turning to face the perpetrator, who is no other than Pyrrha. The older girl is smiling at her with a happy grin, with just an ounce of predator lurking behind it that leaves Ruby suddenly feeling slightly on edge.

"Nope" Pyrrha responds cheerfully, picking Ruby up and flinging her off her bed and straight out of her room. "You've got some training to do. Qrow might have left to 'search for some leads'-" at Pyrrha's air quotes, Ruby figures that she too has learned Qrow's secret code for 'bar trawling'. "-But that's no reason for you to slack off. Now's the perfect time to start training."

Ruby picks herself up "Ugh, fine." That might be making more of a big deal of it than it really is; Ruby's happy to train anytime, only slightly annoyed at being interrupted in her comic time. "Just let me get my scythe-" Ruby's cut off from her approach by Pyrrha's arm reaching across the doorframe and cutting Ruby's path off from her.

"We're going to be focusing on training up your weaknesses right now, not your strengths (though I have noticed there are a few elements of your new weapon that you still need to truly master)" Pyrrha says with wicked grin. "If you want to start your scythe training you'll have to get pas-" Ruby darts under her arm in a burst of petals while the Mistralian native is still talking, using her Semblance to get lower and through faster. She rematerializes right over Mechanical Rose, but before she can grab it Milo is flying right at her face! Ruby separates around it with her Semblance, reconverging past it, but is met with a punch to the gut, which Pyrrha uses get a grip on her with one hand, while the other hand grabs her head and she uses both to toss the lighter girl out.

Ruby slams into the wall outside, her Aura actually taking a bit of a hit that time. Pyrrha steps out of the room and hooks the door with her foot, closing it while never taking her eyes off Ruby. "Not bad, you took advantage of me being distracted to slip by. But you rely too much on your semblance, if you had just darted in without it and kept your momentum, you probably could have grabbed it before I could have stopped you with Milo." Pyrrha's smiling as she explains the pros and cons to Ruby, but Ruby only whimpers. She's been in enough unarmed sessions with Yang to know how this goes from here. Pyrrha might not be super muscle-y, but Ruby knows that she's quite buff and from the training they've done that she's almost if not as strong as Yang (not including Semblance of course).

"You got to use Milo" Ruby complains, to no avail.

"The point of this isn't to make it a 'fair fight'-" Ruby wonders if the four-time tournament champion sees the irony in that statement "- But to challenge you. Milo is behind that door now, though." She raises her fists up in a facsimile of a boxer's stance. "If you can get past me then you'll get to fight me without a weapon. If not, well you'll be stuck here without your precious Rose."

Ruby's mind flashes back to the arena, right when Mercury blocked her path and taunted her about Penny. Did Pyrrha know about- her musings are cut off by Pyrrha tagging her face. Ruby tries to lash out against Pyrrha, making a few darting attacks in and out, but doesn't land a single solid blow. Pyrrha marches forward like an unstoppable juggernaut and Ruby's defence crumples more than a few times against the solid blows Pyrrha sends her way, having to retreat with her Semblance. Pyrrha follows inexorably, kicking her outside the house and continuing the one-sided fight.

Ruby gets a view of Nora and Ren training outside as well as she goes flying from an arm lock turned into throw that has her skidding against the ground. She looks up and sees Pyrrha approaching, not rushing her while she's on the ground, but not cutting her any slack either. In between ragged breaths she catches Nora say (likely a little louder than she meant to) "Wow, she never even pushed Jaune that far."

Ruby gets up and looks up at the house. Her scroll is up in her room, but she doesn't need it to know that she's low on Aura. Her gaze locks onto the window to her room before snapping back to Pyrrha.

An idea comes to her in a flash and she launches herself at Pyrrha, using her semblance to boost her speed over the short gap between them. She keeps her momentum as she turns back into human form to slam her legs into Pyrrha's arms that have come together in a hasty guard. Blasting off of them, Ruby knocks Pyrrha down while sending herself up in the air, drawing on her Semblance one last time to reach the window to her room on the second story. It isn't locked so she throws it open and grabs her scythe quickly, before Pyrrha can pull any polarity tricks to get Mechanical Rose away from her.

"Hah, I got her! Now you'll get to see what I can really do." Ruby triumphantly yells down to Pyrrha, who's just picking herself off the ground. Ruby's standing on the window ledge, leaning out as she says this, but before she can open her mouth again, everything starts swaying for a moment and she barely keeps her grip. Pyrrha jumps up in a single bound, ready to catch her if she falls, and helping Ruby back inside when she lands there.

"I think you've had enough for the moment. Let's take a break and review what happened, give your muscles and Aura a chance to recover." Ruby nods at that, eager to sit down for a moment. She collapses on the bed while Pyrrha gets her some water, which she sits up to drink.

"Hah, hah, that was pretty tough. How did I do?" Ruby asks.

"Well… you showed some innovative moves at the beginning and end there, so there's promise. You relied too much on your semblance though and just to run past me or away, not using it to fight me. Your base unarmed skill also needs a lot of work, but we can improve it. Tell me what you thought about how I fought."

"Waaay too strong" Ruby mutters under her breath.

"What was that?"

"Ah ha, nothing, nothing." Ruby pauses to really consider the fight. "You fight differently than Yang. You use your reach and keep people at a distance, where she moves to flurry people. I was used to how Yang fought, so I tried to land a few hit here and there and move out, but that was the wrong choice against you. You blocked everything really well, I couldn't get close. Except for when you wanted me to get close and you'd turn the move into a throw." Ruby cracks her neck to the side as she remembers getting rag-dolled around by those throws.

"Whoa, I'm impressed and surprised." She must realize how that sounded, because a moment afterwards she adds "I mean, you have a very good grasp of how the fight went, even if your skills aren't up to snuff yet."

"Yeah, Dad and Yang trained me pretty well, but I still never 'got' hand-to-hand stuff." Ruby does some karate chopping motions and sounds, causing Pyrrha to stifle a laugh. "I can analyze it after the fact, but that doesn't stop me from getting my butt beat in the moment."

"Hmm, I think in part the problem's a psychological block, and in part a focus issue." Ruby frowns at those words.

"I'm not a crazy killer! Or are you saying I'm bad at punching because I'm not a crazed killer?" Ruby didn't think she managed to push Pyrrha that hard, but she sees a sweat drop form on the side of her head right after she talks.

"Psychological, not psychotic. And it's a pretty minor mental problem, you've just convinced yourself you can't win. You fought Yang, and if your father is anything like her then they're both amazing at fisticuffs. You were never close to matching them, so in your mind whenever you were without your weapon you thought it was a guaranteed loss."

Pyrrha sits down beside her on the bed. "I was taught many lessons by my teachers when I was being trained to be a tournament fighter, but my most important one was one of the first. My coach at the time, Carrot Milton, said this to me before my first fight: 'Go into every fight knowing you'll win. Knowing that you are unbeatable. Your opponent can't touch you and this is just a matter of crushing them. The moment you doubt yourself is the moment you lose, even if the fight hasn't started yet. So go into that ring sure that you're invincible, and you will be'." She sighs softly at that. Given her previous title and Pyrrha's not-so-great-feelings about it, Ruby can guess that went a little too well for her.

"I sorta get that, but…" Ruby tries to articulate how she can't seem to envision that, even when she pictures her having punched the stupid smirk off of Mercury's face, there's a part of her in the back of her mind that whispers 'this couldn't happen', 'you failed before, you'll fail again'.

"Like I said, it's a block you'll work past. Just… try to act like you do when fighting Grimm. You're so confident, completely fearless and decisive then, channel those feelings into how you fight. It'll also help when we get you regularly training in a style that's better for you. Yang's style is heavy boxing based, right?" Pyrrha raises her arms up in Yang's stance and Ruby can't help but wincing for the briefest of moments at Pyrrha's right arm, remembering what Yang has lost. She doesn't know if Pyrrha noticed that and just moved past it or missed her reaction. "That style doesn't really work for you, you don't have the reach for it and your punches, well they aren't that great in general." Ruby frowns at that, Pyrrha placates her, placing a hand on her knee. "Your legs on the other hand, have a fair amount of power behind them. I've seen how strong they are up close, and you've used kicks occasionally when fighting with your scythe. Honestly your momentum control is great, with how you use your body to swing your giant scythe around and you've learned to use that for your kicks too. This will just be teaching you how to use them without your weapon. They'll hit a bit less hard without it, but they should be more than serviceable the few times you need to use them. For your hands we'll mostly focus on parrying and a few elbow strikes for anyone that manages to get past your legs and guard."

Phrased like that, it sounds a lot more manageable than 'trying to beat Yang in a fist fight'. Ruby eagerly nods. "Alright, yeah! I'm gonna do this! My kicks will break bones – wait no, that's more Nora's thing – they'll shatter boulders and be unbeatable!" She bounces up and throws a few kicks in the air (nearly missing a cabinet) and Pyrrha stifles a chuckle at Ruby's actions. "Hey, I gotta have confidence in myself, how can I do that if you aren't confidant in me?"

"It's not that, I'm just glad to see the sudden turnabout in your attitude." The mirth in her voice dims a bit as she continues, adopting a more serious tone, clasping Ruby's hands with her own as she looks straight at her. "I really do have every faith in you, that's why I'm pushing you. You have such potential, to lead us, to stop the Grimm, to drive back the darkness." Ruby can tell that she means it in a way beyond just the dark creatures of Grimm and bad guys, in people's personal darkness as well.

"I- I can't, I mean, I'm just an ordinary girl-" Ruby's explanations are cut off by an unexpected snort from Pyrrha, surprising both of them for a moment.

"Well, you're a huntress aren't you?" At Ruby's reluctant nod Pyrrha continues "And you're leading our team."

"Yeah, but I'm not a super-duper leader or whateve-"

"Maybe not yet, but you will be. We just have to make your potential shine." There's an unwavering belief in her voice that convinces Ruby that Pyrrha can't be swayed on this point, at least not right now.

"I'm just a normal girl with normal knees" Ruby mutters. Pyrrha's face scrunches up quizzically at that, opens her mouth as if to ask before closing it again and standing up.

"Alright, I'm going to help Ren with his endurance training and Nora with her accuracy." Ruby can hear sounds of explosions, maniacal laughter, and a few yelps from Ren coming from outside. "Meditate on how you should feel when fighting. Don't even picture it as 'fighting unarmed', it's just a fight and Mechanical Rose happens to not be by your side. When I get back we can train with our weapons. She pulls Milo to her hand from where it was stuck in the wall with her semblance before jumping out the window.

Ruby sees the new X-ray and Vav comics she has lying on her bed, tempting her with their new adventures… she gathers them up and throws them in a cabinet drawer. Reading them might be fun, but she'd trade all the comics in the world if she could get Penny back. Ruby doesn't think there's anything all that special about her, like Pyrrha seems to, but if she can get strong enough to stop anything like the Battle of Beacon from happening again she'll take every ounce of training she can get.


	14. Chapter 14 - Convalescence

Chapter 14 - Convalescence

Pyrrha was finishing up her training session when she noticed Qrow drunkenly ambling towards the house from down the path. She doesn't want to judge Qrow too much, Pyrrha knows she was too hard on him in the past, and the few hints she learned about 'the Branwen tribe' implied that he obviously hadn't had a life that was all sunshine and roses in the past. Even with that in mind it seemed disgraceful for a hunter of his stature to drown himself in drink. Pyrrha waved for the other to end training and go inside, which Ren was quite grateful for, dropping his semblance and collapsing to his knees for a moment.

Pyrrha wanted Nora to get more accurate with her attacks and Ren needed to work on his endurance so she came up with an exercise to cover both at once. Nora would try to hit Ren while Ren was only allowed to dodge… while keeping his semblance up the whole time. Admittedly a bit tougher for Ren at first, but after Pyrrha had finished with Ruby she started slightly tugging on Nora's hammer and throwing it off course. Not so much that Nora couldn't make minute last second adjustments, but enough to make it that much harder. Pyrrha herself was using her Polarity to do that throughout her own regular workout routine, which was a bit challenging to focus on. The gains wouldn't be instantaneous, but she hoped that with time they'd be enough to match whatever forces Salem sent their way.

They marched back to the front of the house to meet a young boy that looked like he was a farmer. "Um, I'm sorry but, well you see- yes I'm getting there." He cuts off his own stammerings to argue with himself, which worries Pyrrha a bit until Qrow drunkenly drags himself up to the front of the house, leaning on the kid.

"Guys, guys I found him!" Qrow excitedly slurs out. He brushes past them to open the door to the house. "Ruby, I found Ozpin!" He shouts before collapsing on one of the couches. Pyrrha hears a distant cry of 'What?' as she turns to stare at the young boy who is obviously far more than a simple farm hand. All three of the Beacon students stand there with slack jaws at the sight of him.

"I… think we should go inside to talk about this." He might be Ozpin, but he really sounds like a simple boy to her right now.

Pyrrha lay back on her bed as she reflected on everything that had been discussed downstairs. It was already getting somewhat late in the day before he arrived and after that talk everyone had way too much to process to start training again, so they all went to bed. Intellectually she knew that Ozpin would reincarnate, Qrow had already told them that, it was just different to really see it in person.

Oscar (as she found out the boy was called) seemed like a nice kid. He reminded her a little too much of Jaune at times; a young boy, running away from home to chase his dreams of being a hero? At least he had Ozpin to take over for him if he got into trouble, though that didn't entirely alleviate her concerns (in fact it raised several others, not that she could do anything about most of them). Pyrrha knew Ozpin had a reputation for being one of the greatest huntsmen of all time, and that was before she learned that he was a Wizard as well. Still, as Cinder proved, even in an adult body there were threats that could take him out and being Ozpin's reincarnation put a big target on his back.

She shook her head. Ozpin hadn't chosen to be joined to Oscar, and he really had tried to protect them. When Ozpin had been given control for a moment Pyrrha managed to bite out an apology for what she did (triggering the Battle of Beacon, wasting the chance he gave them) and didn't do (not seizing the chance he offered her to fulfill her destiny). Ozpin for his part apologized sincerely for what he kept from her and absolved her of any wrong doing on her part, pointing out she made reasonable choices each time and no one knew how close Cinder was to her goals. Pyrrha can't say that some part of her isn't still upset with them for keeping secrets from her, but she's trying to understand their position and can see where she went wrong too.

Ozpin was also more… flamboyant and extravagant than Pyrrha remembered. He'd flip through the air, dramatically point and twirl his cane around, generally be far more outspoken than he was as Ozpin-Ozpin (which, thinking of it, Pyrrha should probably inquire as to what his original name was). She remembered the headmaster could be quite dramatic at Beacon, but he didn't move around as much when talking and wouldn't gesture anywhere near as wildly. He also tended to lead the students to the answers he wanted them to reach, but let them figure it out on their own, whereas now he was being more direct. Was it a conscious choice? Did he behave that way at Beacon because he was the headmaster and that was all an act? Was his 'fusing with Oscar over time' already starting to happen or did he just feel more open with them now that they had been brought in on all his secrets?

All the others seemed to take his appearance quite well (even if at times they were a little surprised by his mannerisms), Ruby seeming the most enthused. Pyrrha didn't think she was the only one wondering about his staff, but Ruby was the only one who spoke up to ask if it was a relic (not that it would have made sense for it to be one given what Lionheart and Qrow said, but it still made her wonder given how close he kept it to him). Qrow recovered faster than Pyrrha would have thought, given how drunk he was, but she guessed that was a necessity when one drank as much as he regularly did. The few times he added to the discussion his points were well thought out, even if spoken in a slurred voice.

Ozpin was also disturbed by Lionheart's behaviour, which is why he asked them not to reveal his presence to Lionheart. She might have had something to say to him about keeping further secrets if she hadn't been wary of him too. Something about him… it seemed off, moreso than any time she'd seen him before.

Having Ozpin wasn't a magical fix to their problems, he didn't truly give them much by way of new direction (Pyrrha prided herself on already being on top of the training issue), but he had a way of making things feel more in control around him (it must have been something in the way he carried himself and spoke; there wasn't any visual sign of when Ozpin was in control).

Qrow's idea to look for other hunters sparked an idea of her own, which would give her something to do when Ozpin oversaw the other's training (not that she wouldn't be training too, she just didn't have as much that Ozpin could help her improve upon).

She sighed, tired from everything that had happened today and looked over her bed at Akouo. Her shield was still a lump of beaten metal from her fight with the Nuckelavee. What came up next was still uncertain, but it'd be a brighter day tomorrow than it was yesterday, which Pyrrha thought was good enough as she settled into slumber for the night.


	15. Chapter 15 - Partners

Chapter 15 - Partners 

"Euha" Ruby grunted out as she managed a tight turn through the air, swinging around from the cord that attached her to Mechanical Rose, now lodged in the ground. At the apex of her swing she triggered the magnetized release she'd added on to the cord, sending her flying at Pyrrha, feet first. Pyrrha blocked her, obviously, but Ruby knew that she'd do that. Kicking off of the tall woman's guard she knocked Pyrrha's arms into the air as she bounced backwards before using her Semblance to reappear under Pyrrha's now open guard, striking at her gut with an elbow. Only to be blocked again, Pyrrha sweeping one of her hands down fast enough to knock aside her blow.

Alright, let's see how you deal with this, Ruby thinks to herself, spinning with the deflection and striking with her other arm. An elbow wouldn't land well from that angle, but she extends her arm outward from the position going for a chop to Pyrrha's collarbone, the arm on that side still down from her deflection. Pyrrha's emerald eyes widen at that, before narrowing as she palm heels Ruby's shoulder with her free arm, pushing Ruby just out of range.

Ruby's going to land a solid hit on Pyrrha this time, she knows it. Ruby launches her foot out to sweep Pyrrha's legs, but she just hops over it. Aborting that motion Ruby runs back to her weapon, pulling it out of the ground (the wire automatically clicking back in place) and before even turning around she dashed to the side with her Semblance. Pyrrha's shot missed her, flying just above where Mechanical Rose had been lodged. Reforming atop a nearby tree, Ruby shifts her weapon to sniper mode, firing rapidly at Pyrrha. Pyrrha runs away from the shots, trying to throw off her aim with her Semblance.

Pyrrha seems pushed more than usual without her shield and unable to deflect the laser shots (she's shifting the gun slightly between each shot, but Ruby can feel it too closely, the gun in both her hands and her aim impeccable). Pyrrha tires of that pretty quickly, trying to yank away at Ruby's gun with her Semblance. Ruby counters, holding onto it tightly with her left arm, switching her Rose into sword form and throwing out the tail spike into the tree she had been perched on. The wire connecting it to her went taught from the force on her sword pulling her away. She hung for a few moments suspended by the two forces as Pyrrha switch Milo to rifle mode and started taking shots at Ruby. Ruby did her best to dodge but stuck like that she was still hit by a few glancing bullets. Still, she waited, knowing that the timing would be crucial.

It happened, Pyrrha started focusing on pulling on the tail spike with her Polarity, and Ruby scattered, leaving the armband connecting her to her weapon and tail spike behind, not wasting a single second to land her drop kick on Pyrrha. Pyrrha can't get out of the way in time, so she raises Milo to block, which it does, but it knocks the weapon out of her hands. Ruby grins, capitalizing on that, throwing a number of blows rapidly at Pyrrha. The older girl still blocks all of them but Ruby turns what seemed like a sloppy punch into a successful elbow that clips the side of Pyrrha's chin as she pulls her arm back.

Ruby takes a lot more hits than she gives though, so using her semblance she becomes a scarlet blur racing back to where her weapons have fallen; only when she gets there she finds them flying over her head, towards Pyrrha's hands. "I'm glad you've gotten more comfortable with using your unarmed strikes, but you shouldn't be so quick to relinquish your weapon. Who knows what somewhat might do with it?"

Ruby's shocked face turns into a smirk as the wind from her quick movement carries Milo from the ground towards her. She snatches it out of the air and levels it at Pyrrha. "Right back at ya."

Pyrrha's surprise morphs to acceptance as she holds her hands up and signals the end of the spar. "Aww, but we were having so much fun." Ruby pouts as she walks towards her teammate and they hand each other back their weapons. "I was really looking forward to seeing how Milo's triple shift handled."

"That does sound fun, but I think it might be better if we walked each other through what we thought of the fight. Maybe we can give each other a few pointers on how to wield each other's weapons before we try them out." She's giving Mechanical Rose a suspicious look and- ok that's fair. Even Ruby can admit her sweatheart is rather complicated to properly use.

Aura can protect a weapon from damage and even some cases of improper use when the holder knows the weapon their using. Without it, it's easy for someone to damage a weapon as complex as most hunters use, and Pyrrha's and Ruby's weapons fall on the more complicated side of the scale than most.

"Alright, but… what do you need my input for? You're the one teaching me." Ruby pulls out her scroll as she talks and then double takes at the Aura levels. "Pyrrha, I think there's something wrong with my scroll, can I double check yours?"

"Sure, what's up?" Pyrrha asks while pulling out her own device. Ruby shifts Mechanical Rose back to it's holstered 'box' form and hooks it on her belt, freeing her hand to take Pyrrha's scroll. The bars are the same there.

"Pyrrha, your Aura is only a bit above mine, what's up with that?" Pyrrha looks confused and then starts giggling, making Ruby even further bewildered.

"It's fine, really. This is a good place to start our talk." Pyrrha takes them to a nearby bench and they sit down. The safehouse is meant to pass by detection, but Ruby's gotten a feel for how quiet and peaceful it really is in the past few days. A not insignificant part of it is it's location at the top of the mountain and the very rough path leading to any major streets from here; the perfect hideout for a Huntress that can easily ascend such a slope. It does mean she has to walk a bit to mail her letters to Yang, but that's not much of a problem (she even invented a speed training exercise for herself to use while mailing them).

"So, this has to be wrong, right? I remember you hitting me waaay more times than I got you. My aura is pretty average, too." The scrolls placed Ruby at over 50% while Pyrrha was just above 70%. Ruby doesn't want to be seen as dumb, but she can't figure it out and yet it seems obvious to the older girl.

Something of what she felt must have shown on her face because Pyrrha held her hands up placatingly. "It's an easy mistake to make. Especially considering your situation."

"My situation?"

"Think on who you grew up with. Your Uncle is a very experienced huntsman, and your sister has quite the sizeable amount of aura. Maybe-" she stops talking for a split second before continuing as if nothing happened. "Maybe Jaune had an extremely high aura, but your sister's and uncle's are hardly 'small'. You might consider your Aura average, but it's actually fairly large."

Pyrrha takes out a glass of her protein shake and drinks some, which Ruby takes as a sign to do so for her own, pulling out the bottle she left here before fighting Pyrrha. It tastes alright and supposed to help growth. Ruby wasn't deterred by milk, she won't be stopped here. She gulps down the whole thing in three seconds and Pyrrha pauses for some reason, just looking at her, before smiling softly.

"Going over the fight, you managed to deflect or parry most of my attacks or minimize the few shots I did manage to land. I also used my Semblance and Aura rather freely in that fight, combined with your elbow, my Aura went down a bit. My Aura isn't small, but, well there's a reason why I maintained the 'Invincible Girl' image and made sure not to let myself get hit in a fight. I've trained my Semblance for precision, but I've only recently begun working on bigger Polarity pulls, and they're still somewhat more costly for me."

Ruby nods her head, understanding what Pyrrha's saying. "I get that, my Semblance took a long time for me to use so easily. There's still more I want to do with precision and manipulation of it, some of the new moves I've been working on are tricky or take a bit more Aura."

"Ruby, I've been meaning to ask you, what is your Semblance? Back at Beacon I thought it was just Speed, even after the 'Food Fight' incident." Both of them can't help but grin at their memory of that day. No matter what hardships come her way, Ruby wouldn't trade her memories of Beacon for the world.

"My Semblance is, uh, one of those family Semblances, I think." Weiss had another word for it but Ruby can't exactly remember the phrase her partner had used. "My semblance is, if I had to pick a name for it, I'd call it 'Scatter'. I turn into rose petals and can move rapidly in that form. I've even picked up how to turn others into rose petals with me and to split up the swarm of petals I become. The movement is fast enough to create a lot of wind with it too." Ruby smiles cheekily as she remembers using the burst of wind to throw all the food at Juniper after pinning them to the wall with the violent gust. She had been pretty much completely drained of Aura afterwards, but it felt well worth it.

"That make sense. I actually thought that you and your Uncle shared a hereditary" that was the word! "- Semblance of speed throughout your family line, just with different Tells. I thought you left rose petals and he left feathers (which would have been rather on the nose considering your names)."

She giggled at the thought of Qrow having the same semblance as hers. She may have learned how to fight from him, but even as she loved him dearly, Uncle Qrow was a very different person than her. "No, I gained my semblance from my mom, Summer Rose."

"What was your mom like?" It's a simple question, yet the answer doesn't feel so simple. It doesn't feel like something she wants to hold back with Pyrrha any more, either.

"She was… amazing. I feel like that's what I should tell you. What everyone says." Ruby quickly adds "Because it's true, she really was, everyone can tell you that. I… didn't get to know her well. I was pretty young when she went missing on that mission. What I do remember of her was awesome, she was amazing. Fighting Grimm, baking cookies, kissing scrapes better, Yang came up with the term 'Supermom', and she really was. She gave me my cloak, and I wear it every day to remind myself of her. Her example, it's what inspired me to be a Huntress, and yet…"

Ruby's smile starts to twitch downward slightly. She lets out a sigh and looks Pyrrha dead in the eyes "There are times when I'm just, so, so, angry at her. For leaving me, when I was young and needed her. And I know it's wrong, because I'm just like her."

"Well-" Ruby cuts off whatever Pyrrha was about to say.

"I have her Semblance, the same Silver Eyes as her, a cloak that she made (the only difference there is that it's red instead of white). I know we're about to be doing dangerous stuff, but I'm not going to stop. Because I can help people, and I truly want to. I accept that, wholeheartedly. So why am I mad at her sometimes for doing the same thing?" Ruby's face is pained as she admits that.

She turns away for a moment, before Pyrrha's hands being placed over her own bring her back. "You aren't wrong to have those feelings. You haven't let them stop you from doing what's right. Not like I did."

"What are you talking about? You've been doing the right thing this whole time, traveling with us, helping us stop Salem and-" the older girl cuts Ruby off.

"I've been helping myself only. We were all feeling down in the forest, but I was the only one who let my negative emotions overcome me, who spiralled downward and pulled everyone down with me, which in turn called in the Grimm." Pyhrra pulled back her hands now clenched into tight fists. "At first, I bucked against your leadership, feeling you were naïve. I did it because I was upset about someone 'replacing Jaune' and that I was the only one strong enough to lead the team, but you weren't and I wasn't. I only joined because I thought I'd have a chance of vengeance at Cinder. If I'm honest, that's still one of the major driving reasons why I'm working with Ozpin and Qrow." Ruby knew things weren't the best between Pyrrha and them, but she didn't think it was that bad. Ruby got how angry Pyrrha was, she felt similarly about Cinder and what her plans had done to the people she loved, but Ruby couldn't get being driven by vengeance. As bad as Cinder was, Ruby just wanted to make sure that she stopped the woman from doing more harm, not get revenge.

"When I was in the Nuckelavee's mouth, I gave up. For just a moment there I thought there was no point… and then you came, silver light shining through to save me. You can feel hurt at times, like anyone would, but you don't let it hold you back from doing the right thing. From being kind and not lashing out at others." That part is softer, as if she's speaking to herself. "People give me such acclaim, but you're the one worthy of it. You're the Silver Eyed warrior from those stories, someone who can destroy the Grimm and inspire people." This is really hurting Ruby's 'normal girl, normal knees' theory, which she still clung to, despite Pyrrha's evidence.

"You think it's my destiny to be like those soldiers of legend? To strike down Grimm with a single glance?" Ruby asks, trying to interject some doubt in the taller girl's theories.

Pyrrha pauses, standing up with her back to Ruby. "I… don't know what I think about 'destiny' anymore. I thought I knew, thought that destiny wasn't an unavoidable fate, but an end goal, something you strived to achieve. Then I lost what I thought I was promised and, well I'm re-evaluating my thoughts on destiny." She turned around to face Ruby, seeming even taller than usual from the smaller girl's seated position. "However, I do know that you've already started on that path. To be a great huntress and inspire others. You destroyed the Nuckelavee and saved my life."

"Well, yeah, but I don't know how to do that, it's not a thing I can just make happen." Ruby tries explaining. She knows her Silver Eyes can destroy even very old Grimm, but she hasn't been able to make it work on command, and it tires her out a bunch every time too.

"So? That doesn't stop you having done it, twice now. Quick tell me about what I should have improved in our sparring match."

Ruby's surprised at the sudden change in pace but quickly racks her mind for an answer. "Uh, well obviously your lack of shield is a weakness, there were a lot of times in that fight where your first instincts were to use it, but then couldn't because it isn't here. You were strong and fast, but you were too defensive." That part is something Ruby remembers from Yang constantly hammering that fact in about her the few times her older sister could convince her to spar (though Ruby personally thought Yang was too aggressive, even with her Semblance rewarding her for taking a hit). Encouraged by Pyrrha's motion to go on, Ruby continues. "I was fast and able to react well, but if you had been willing to take a few more hits, your attacks would have drained my aura far worse. The biggest thing was inflexibility. You had the goal of separating me from my weapon and for the most part just kept on tugging it with your Semblance. Letting it go slack would have caught me off guard and given you a split-second opening with your shots."

"An impressive analysis. And even more impressive is how you were able to push me far enough to find those openings in my style. Fighters twice your age have failed (on both counts)." Pyrrha shushes the young girl, anticipating Ruby's desire to try and say something counter to that, which she finds rude, if accurate. "I can't say whether your destiny is something that you'll have to strive to achieve or not, but no matter how it's defined, you're well on the path to becoming a remarkable warrior, a light that can lead us through these dark times. I'll protect you and make sure you can achieve it."

Ruby shakes her head and stands up to look Pyrrha straight in the eye (while brushing aside the minor detail of her standing on her tiptoes to do so without craning her head up). "We'll protect each other and boost ourselves up to achieve both our destinies." She sticks her hand out toward Pyrrha. "Partners?"

Ruby knows that she can't be Jaune and that Pyrrha wouldn't want her, or anyone, to try and fill that role. Ruby isn't sure that she would want anyone filling Weiss' role right now either, even though the Heiress is still alive and well. But she can be a good friend, a close confidant, and right now they're understanding and sticking firm with to other, which feels like Partner material for her (and also, Ruby hopes it will get her off this pedestal that Pyrrha seems to be placing her on). A series of emotions passes by Pyrrha's face before settling on tentative joy.

"That sounds wonderful, partner" and Pyrrha shakes her hand, causing the young girl to almost fall over from where she forgot she was standing on her tiptoes.

"Ok, now that we're partners, seriously, how do you fight like that!?" Ruby exclaims pointing at Pyrrha's heels. Weiss had explained it as balance training and continual wear that let huntresses fight like that, but Ruby knew better now. Magic was apparently a real thing and there must be some kind of dark spell that made lady stilts fightable in.

Pyrrha laughs before turning around to greet someone Ruby can't see from over her shoulder, though his high voice identifies him for her.

"It's good to see my students engaged in such mirth. And a good question too, I'll admit that I never got an answer about that from Glynda."

"Ozpin! You're back." Ruby tries to hold back on sounding too enthusiastic to see him. Pyrrha hasn't exploded at him like she did on the road with Qrow, but Ruby can tell that her new partner is somewhat lukewarm to the immortal wizard.

"Yes, I was just checking on some things. Other, smaller contingencies I've laid over the years. It looks like you've just done some training, but I'd be happy to work with you now. Give Oscar a bit of exercise too." He turns to Pyrrha and says "While I was mostly going to focus on Ruby's development you would feel free to join us too."

The words are hardly out of his mouth before she responds "I'm sorry, I can't join you. I have to go check on the repairs being done to my shield and look into some other business in town, thank you for the offer though." Pyrrha's smile is quite good, no one could fault it, but Ruby's been with her long enough to easily tell that it's her 'public persona' smile. In time, hopefully things will get better between them, especially now that Ozpin isn't keeping any more secrets from them.

Ruby helped her design some improvements to the shield so she can't wait to see it later in the day. She waves goodbye to Pyrrha as she heads down the mountain before squaring off against Oscar, settling into a stance that the Mistralian warrior taught her.


	16. Chapter 16 - Old Haunts, New Hunt

Pyrrha walked down the streets of Mistral, taking in the sights, sounds, even smells of her old home. Dancers with masks preformed mini plays on street corners, lacquered screen doors with patterns of flowers and nature opened and closed. Laughter bellowed out, songs were played, and lovers shed tears. The wind carried scents of fruit and grilled meats to her nose, almost sending her mouth watering. It felt good to be back home.

Oh, there were the stares that she had to endure, it had been almost a year, but that apparently wasn't enough to dull her fame in some eyes. There were the obvious stratifications between classes, especially up on the higher levels. The few faunus walking nearby weren't mistreated, but there were little hints, cues in how their heads hung just a bit lower, slight downturns in a ladies lip as a faunus worker passed by. Nothing overt, no the higher levels of the mountain were far too 'cultured' for that, and those deceptions and deflections that people loved to play here were just another thing that annoyed her about this place. But it still felt like home, and Pyrrha honestly couldn't say that she didn't love this place, even if she knew it would start to grate on her after a couple more weeks.

She had grown up on this mountain, lived here for most of her childhood, and even after her parents had moved to Argus (at her request), she spent half of her time over here for tournaments and related events.

A vibrant whorl of brightly colored fabrics swarmed past her as a group of friends passed by her, not recognizing her in the slightest and so engrossed in their own conversation they barely avoided hitting her on their way by. The fashion was something she always loved about Mistral. She knew she was a bit vain, with how she had chosen her battle outfit, the jewelry, so it probably wasn't the best trait about her. The former champion couldn't help but be glad she still had it, she had thought she lost all interest in that, amongst other things after Beacon. It turns out that it was just a case of a couple month long trek through the wilderness not being the greatest place to inspire the fashion conscious part of her mind.

Her eye was caught by a gorgeous red dress she saw on a woman walking by. Pyrrha loved red, and that shade was good, but the style wouldn't quite work for her. It wasn't too much brighter than her usual clothes and she thought it would look great on Ruby. She had to hold back a snort as she thought of Ruby wearing it with her cloak. There's probably more than one person here that would think it would be a high crime of fashion, but Pyrrha thought it would look adorable.

She sighed and pushed such thoughts from her head. It was fine to spend a few idle thoughts on fashion and the like, but her outfit was fine and she had no clue if Ruby would even want to go clothes shopping (Ruby referred to heels as 'lady stilts' more than once under her breath, but Pyrrha was learning not make assumptions about one thing meaning another for the young girl). Pyrrha picked up her pace, she had a couple missions to achieve today and she wasn't going to succeed at anything if she wasted her time on idle day dreams.

The forge was hot when she entered it, which wasn't surprising, but still unpleasant. "Katrina, is my shield finished?" Pyrrha shouted out over the din of hammers and metal scraping against metal. The woman working on her shield set down her whetstone and picked up Akouo, walking towards Pyrrha. Katrina Xang was a fox faunus with huge biceps from all the time she spent here, perfecting her pieces. She's slightly older than Pyrrha, in her late twenties, with a vibrant smile on her face. A pair of goggles hung around her neck and she had a heavy duty apron on to help protect her from the heated metal she worked with. An outline of soot hung around her eyes outlining where her goggles had been, not yet wiped away by her.

The forge had a few dark lights but was mostly lit by the orange glow of the furnaces, most of them in use. The building itself was quite large and had several people moving about, this way or that, and even more at their work benches. Pyrrha knew that there was a section in the back where they could write, deal with forms, and sketch new weapons ideas.

At least, she assumed it was still in the back, that's where she had gone last time, many years ago when getting her weapons, before her first tournament. The memory brought a smile to her face. Back then the place was far smaller, with less advanced tools (Mistral tended to prefer a more 'traditional' look than other kingdoms and definitely wouldn't be using the sleek production factories like Atlas had, but they weren't 'behind the times' when it came to making weapons), and only one black smith. Jade had been just starting up and she had been running into difficulty getting customers up here. Not everyone was biased against her due to race, but enough were that it was difficult for her.

In those days, Pyrrha was just a warrior with promising potential. Her sponsors had given her a bit of money to get a weapon built, one that could triple shift (an unusual feature but her skill with sword, spear, and rifle demanded it). Pyrrha had been using some training weapons beforehand, but she needed a proper weapon for this fight. A champion's weapon. She had been searching around, and while she found many good quality pieces of gear, they lacked a certain something. Katrina's works didn't, they had heart emblazoned into everything they did. Pyrrha decided on the spot that Jade was the one she wanted to make Milo. Akouo was just a faint idea at the time, something Pyrrha had been wondering about. It wasn't like the blacksmith had been able to tell how famous she would become, and since she wasn't she hadn't been given a reasonable, but not huge budget for the project. Katrina had fulfilled her request with enthusiasm and then some, sensing Pyrrha's warrior drive and giving her the best gear she could to make Pyrrha's dreams a reality. The feeling of holding them in her hands after her first win… It was incredible beyond belief, a high she strived (and often failed) to recapture several times thereafter.

"Aye, it's done girl" Katrina says, snapping Pyrrha back to the present. Akouo is passed back to her and Pyrrha holds on to it reverently. It feels a little bit heavier with the additions Katrina has made, but less so than Pyrrha had worried about, and it's still perfectly balanced (it had to be made slightly larger when unfolded to keep that balance, but it's a worthy trade off for the dust it can now channel). She moves it on her arm and flows through a few block katas, getting a feel for it before flinging it forward a few meters, then pulling it back with her Polarity, inches away from another blacksmith's head (he looks around a moment after, the wind from her throw alerting him to something having been there but quickly gives up when he can't find it).

Katrina's worried expression quickly morphs back into a big grin. "Haha, I'm glad to see you find it acceptable lass. Your designs were quite exacting." Pyrrha remembered that, Ruby had been quite specific about how the Dust lines should be carved and what material could be used for the best conductivity, especially since Akouo would only be using Electric Dust.

"I'm sorry, I hope it wasn't too much, especially since you'd said you'd do it for free…" Katrina had refused any sort of payment Pyrrha had thought about scrounging up for her (Pyrrha wasn't poor by any sense of the word, but her lack of contact with her parents seemed to lead to access to her savings cut off).

"I enjoyed the challenge" Katrina says, slapping Pyrrha on the back. It was friendly contact, but given her strength it likely would have knocked over any regular person; Pyrrha was a rather sturdy warrior so she took the blow in stride. "Besides, without you I would never have all this." She opens up her arms to gesture to the entirety of the business and all the people working within.

"Ya have to tell me who you've been cheating on me with, though" she says raising an eyebrow at Pyrrha.

"Wha-What?" Pyrrha stammers out coughing, unsure of what the older woman is talking about.

The fox faunus laughs and says "These designs, obviously! They're quite good and I have half a mind to be jealous." She laughs and interrupts Pyrrha's attempts to wave her off. "It's fine, I understand that you needed someone new to work with in Vale, I'm glad that you at least came to me to get Akouo upgraded (though the shape you had left her in)." She shakes her head in disapproval before continuing. "You have some basic knowledge of weapons-" Pyrrha felt she had a little more than basic knowledge of weapons "- but ya ain't that skilled."

"I had a friend of mine make them, Ruby Rose."

"Hmm, well I can't say her name rings any bells, but I dinnae know too much about Valeish blacksmiths."

"Actually, she's a Huntress like myself. She's quite good at weaponsmithing too though, so she worked me through some ideas for improvements." That had been quite a fun night, staying up and working on her shield together. It almost threw off their sleep plan for the next day's training, but it had been amazing to watch Ruby get so engrossed in the process. Pyrrha wasn't ignorant to weapon design, every huntress in training knew something about it, but a fair number of the terms and techniques Ruby was describing went over her head (Ruby was pretty patient about explaining them but it was probably for the best that she had written everything down on notes to give to Katrina).

Katrina raised her eyebrows at that "She's your age and she can make designs this well? It's almost a shame she became a Huntress if she can design beauty's like this."

Pyrrha grins and decides to reveal a bit more just to see how much of a reaction she can get from the weaponsmith. "Actually, she's two years younger than me, she got into Beacon early. I think that was just a quick sketch though, her own weapon is…" She pauses for a moment, thinking about Mechanical Rose. "At least a Quadruple if not Quintuple shift weapon, with Dual Sniper modes, sword, and Scythe modes."

Pyrrha isn't disappointed as Katrina's mouth drops open and hangs that way for long enough Pyrrha begins to become legitimately worried that flies might wander in before she can close it. She starts mumbling an incoherent string of half sentences sounding much like this: "But how could she- Maybe if you put in a spring there, but no, that crazy talk- What alloy was-. How gifted must she be as a huntress?"

Pyrrha isn't even sure that Katrina meant for that question to be answered, but she responded anyways "Very skilled. I was probably the only one better than her in our year." Pyrrha doesn't think it'll remain that way for more than a couple years.

Katrina manages to snap out of it, with an impressed look on her face. "High praise from you." She clasps her hands together and pleads "I would really like to see her weapon (and her too, obviously). Could you get her to come down to the forge sometime?"

Pyrrha laughs awkwardly, sure that Ruby would love it here (possibly too much so, Pyrrha doesn't want her distracted from her training) but they were pretty busy, what with saving the world in secret and all. "I'll see what I can do, we've got a lot to do and I'm not sure how long we can stay." That's true, once they get the relic Ozpin will likely have them on the move. It hardly seems like there's a point in getting it from the vault it's stored in if they aren't going to move it. "Speaking of which, I have to go now. Thank you again." Pyrrha had another important task to complete today. She had no clue how well she would manage it, but if successful it could make their mission a lot easier.

"Ha, it's nothing, really. See if you and your friend can pop down sometime, and even she can't we should catch up." Pyrrha agrees, feeling slightly guilty. She hadn't talked to Katrina much at all since she had gone to Beacon, but hopefully she'd have the chance before she left again.

She walked out of the heat into the fresh, cool, mountain air, basking in it for a moment before moving on. Pyrrha marched right past a nice boutique. She hadn't felt like updating her outfit like her friends had when they had left on this journey (hadn't felt like doing much of anything back then), but she could see the appeal now. There wasn't enough time, and her current outfit was fine, especially for letting people know who she was right away, which even Pyrrha could admit had it's uses. She couldn't afford to be distracted if she was going to stop Salem and kill Cinder.

Cinder. That woman had been on her thoughts or the edges of them for months now. Pyrrha wanted to help stop Salem, of course, but when her shot came she'd take down the Fall Maiden. As to how… she didn't really know. She was excellent as a warrior, but planning out a strike? Complex group battle tactics? That sort of stuff had always been Jaune's field of expertise. Pyrrha had tried to take Cinder down at Beacon, but she failed. Even with the woman having just finished fighting Ozpin, Pyrrha hadn't managed to defeat her. Part of that must have been trying (and failing, much to her eternal guilt) of trying to protect Jaune, but even if she managed to land the perfec scenario, she wondered if she'd be strong enough to beat the Maiden. She sighed heavily as she realized that it might be handy to corner Oscar and get the spirit of her old headmaster to give her tips on how she could fight the magical murderer. Pyrrha chuckled lightly for a moment at how absurd seeming a thought that was to have, and how it was entirely applicable to her life now, such as it was.

Her team, they might try to get in the way again, and Pyrrha couldn't risk letting that happen. Nora and Ren, she might be able to convince them to step back, but Ruby… Did she have to stop Ruby from helping her?

… No. As much as she was tempted, still worried about failing her like she had Jaune, Pyrrha (logically) knew enough to know that it wasn't the same. She would never undermine his progress, Jaune had come so far in his relatively short time at Beacon, but Ruby did have a lot more training than him. Ruby was also the reason the giant Wyvern was defeated, which must have been what prompted Cinder to flee. If that madwoman could control more Grimm, well having Ruby on her side would help a lot.

Ruby can join her (Pyrrha would still prefer if Ruby supported from a distance and didn't get close enough to be fried) when she fights Cinder. Only her and Pyrrha will make it clear to her to leave should it look like she'd fail again, but… well Ruby's her new partner. And Pyrrha needs to trust her partner. More than that, Ruby's proven herself worthy of that trust time and time again. Pyrrha banishes the doubts of her past (at least temporarily) and vows not to push Ruby away when the time comes.

Pyrrha blushes when she's realized that she's stopped in the middle of the street with her fists clenched in determination, quickly hurrying along. She has a gym to get to.

The gym was a blocky, grey building, the paint starting to chip off. The metal doors were sturdy but had no designs or patterns to attract the eye (and cages over the windows to further keep miscreants out. In short, it was the kind of building that most would call an eyesore, especially higher up the mountain. The only hints as to how important it was were the landing pad for a bulkhead it had off to the side, just behind where carriages could park.

The Square Ring didn't look like much, but Pyrrha knew for a fact that it was one of the largest gathering places for tournament fighters in Mistral, outside of an actual tournament. It was a gym open to very skilled fighters, for quite a steep fee. No paparazzi or crazed fans were allowed in there, and the high up windows made it difficult for even the more rabid fans to sneak in when they'd try to get a peek at their favorite fighters. Not that many knew of this place, it was kept off the beaten path for a reason, a place for fighters to train without having to worry about upholding their 'image'.

Pyrrha walked to door and knocked three times, waiting for the doorperson to open it. "Oh, Pyrrha Nikos!" The stocky woman behind the door exclaimed as she opened the door. "I didn't know you were coming back onto the scene. I'd heard some rumors about Beacon and that you were back now…" The woman had short black hair and was a year or two older than Pyrrha. She had talked to her once or twice, but Pyrrha just couldn't quite remember her name at the moment. She decided to forge on ahead rather than awkwardly asking her.

"I'm sorry, but I'm not exactly coming back to tournament fights. I'd like to talk to some people here, could you do me a favor and let me in."

The woman bites her lip for a moment for nodding. "Sure, just for you. It's not like you're about to be bringing about the press or anything like that here, right?" The question is said as a joke but in a way of 'please answer to confirm not so I don't lose my job'.

"Nothing like that, don't worry about it." She steps aside to let Pyrrha in.

"Alright, well then do whatever it is you've got to Wonder Girl. I should, uh, stay here, but make sure to say hi to the boss." That went over well, was that woman a fan of hers? She had always seemed friendly enough in the vague snippets of conversation Pyrrha could remember, but she didn't really know enough about her to know how she dealt with others.

Pyrrha walked inside the building, down the hallway, past the changing room doors and into the main room. In the back there were the weights and machines designed to push the athletes to their limits, built to withstand even most Aura enhanced workouts. If the building had the usual Mistralian stylings, the obviously Atlesian machines there would clash with them quite horribly (not to say that they didn't clash anyways, just possibly less so with the stone floor and not-quite-run-down aesthetic the gym had.

Near the center was a large ring, for the fighters to test themselves against each other. Currently a small boy with two short swords tested himself against a larger teen that used a heavy Zweihander (it looked like they were going back and forth, with no clear victor, but the larger fighter was just baiting the dual wielder into backing up and taking a moment to think, when a quick shift of his weapon would make a compound bow that would shoot the kid off his feet). No one used their absolute best moves inside the ring, but it was possibly the best place to get a feel for the warriors they'd be fighting against before a tournament. It saw less frequent use as any big competition drew closer, but Pyrrha still remembered how much she had loved stepping up on that stage the first time, and how she had challenged as many people as she could whenever she was at the gym. She had been sequestered away by her trainers for most of her career. There were a couple of trainers/sponsors that didn't like giving away any secrets of their prized fighters fought, so they limited the amount of exposure they had here and at other gyms, and Pyrrha's had definitely done that.

Much time and money had been spent to keep her skills (especially her Semblance) secret, and Pyrrha couldn't deny that the training she got was top notch, but she still loved her time here far more. Not that everything was sunshine and roses, the fighters tended to have large personalities, and they could clash in ugly ways at times, though everyone knew better than to cross certain lines within the gym. There was more than one person who had felt humiliated by her, or otherwise just had problem with her (or more accurately, her image) and had slung quite a few nasty insults at her. A few had tried to 'show her whose really boss' in the ring, but such endeavours went poorly for her (and no matter how many comics insisted, her defeating them did not instantly turn the defeated warriors into her new best friends, much to Pyrrha's disappointment).

Near the front were the training bags/dummies, open space where fighters could go through their forms, and even a small shooting range in the back corner. A good place to practice inbetween sparring bouts in the ring and to get a view for the rest of the gym. The main office was behind the front section of the gym, with a window to view most of the gym while still dealing with paperwork. The door was closed fully, indicating the owner was out and about in the gym.

The owner, a slightly heavyset man with just beginning to recede grey hair caught sight of her (admittedly striking) presence and walked over from the other side of the ring (Pyrrha must have missed him on her first scan of the gym, though she was glad to see her prediction on the current sparring bout was entirely correct). He was hardly dressed to impress, wearing black shorts and a white tank top, but that was one of the perks of management she guessed. "Whoa, Pyrrha Nikos, it's a surprise to see you back around here. I wouldn't have thought you'd needed to go back to the tournament ring after wrecking wyverns." Pyrrha just put on her best professional smile at finding out that her latest title had followed her here. "Or are you just here for old times sake?"

"No Gris, I'm not here for either of those reasons, though I suppose a bit of nostalgia comes from being back in this old gym." Pyrrha takes a deep breath, smelling that pungent aroma of sweat, blood, and a hint of bile and watches that brief mote of nostalgia go away as quickly as it came. "I'm actually here to talk to the fighters, I need some help on a mission and was hoping some of them could lend their aid."

Gris furrows his brows a bit at that. "Pyrrha, you know we all love you-" She very much doubted that, and indeed knew more than a few fighters here she'd avoid given how much some of them had vehemently said the opposite of what Gris was stating. "-But this sounds like a job for huntsmen and huntresses like yourself. They're all capable warriors, sure, only the best get into this gym" he said giving her a brief smile he must have thought was charming. "The best tournament fighters. You're asking them to go up against a whole different kettle of fish asking them to fight the Grimm."

"I don't need them to fight Grimm, it's other humans I'm after." He's surprised, grabbing his chin and thinking as he motions for her to go on. "There's a bandit tribe, and I know it doesn't sound to incredible, but taking them out really is an important mission. The other Hunters of Mistral are busy fighting off the Grimm that are encroaching, so we don't have many other options. We're trying to see if any others can join, but…" She trails off to let him know that she doesn't think too much support will be coming through on that front.

"We? How many hunters have you got so far?"

"Six, including myself." Pyrrha says, wondering how much of a stretch of the truth that counts as, for four students and a barely trained child with Ozpin co-piloting count as 'hunters'.

He considers it for a full minute, Pyrrha standing their politely, not rushing his decision. "Fine, you can ask them, but only once each. If all of them turn you down I expect you accept it. And this better not be a suicide mission, ya hear. I got a lot of money coming in from these fighters." For all his bluster, Pyrrha knows that Gris does care very dearly for everyone that uses his gym.

She smiles "That's perfectly fair, thank you. I sincerely believe that we'll be able to take down the Branwen tribe, we won't be going on this mission until we feel we have enough people."

"The Branwen Tribe?" A deep voice interjects. Looming over both of them was Boren Tenka, a muscular young man, with short dark brown hair. He has red eyes and a square jaw that combined with his shy nature gave him a 'mysterious, stoic' quality that was attributed to him in any of his fights. He never won any tournament while Pyrrha was around (obviously), he consistently made it to the quarter and semi-finals. He had his bastard sword in his hand, and it looked like he had dropped the whetstone he was sharpening it on, his large shield hanging off his back. He was wearing a black t-shirt and some gym shorts, not the full-plate armor he usually wore (he admitted once that beyond the thorough protection it gave it drew out his Atlesian roots and gave him an exotic look that his manager approved of).

They had never talked much before but Pyrrha had always been glad to have him as company the few times they met or trained together. He didn't force her to act or treat her differently than anyone else and she didn't try to force him into conversation when he was reluctant. He seemed a lot more expressive now than she had ever remembered him before an angry look on his face. "Did I hear that right, you're going after the Branwen bandit tribe?"

"I'm sorry, uh, yes, that's right. I was going to ask if you're intereste-"

His face darkened "I'm in. When do we leave?"

"Wow, thank you. Um, I don't know. I'll get your number and let you know. Hopefully soon, within the next week or two, possibly sooner if we can get enough people."

"Good" he simply said as he passed his scroll over to her. "I'll be waiting." Boren took his scroll back after she had exchanged the numbers and walked over to a nearby training dummy and launched into a brutal combo on it.

Pyrrha looked over at Gris in askance and he said "I guess you haven't been kept up with the times. About four months ago his little sister was murdered by those bandits." He shakes his head regretfully. "He's been torn up about it ever since, and now that the 'Invincible Girl' is hear to lead the charge, he's ready to rush off and fight them. You might have your hands full keeping them safe." Pyrrha can't deny that's true, but hopefully her and Qrow will get enough people to take down Raven and the Spring Maiden without anyone having to be seriously injured.

Gris wanders off to watch over some of the fights going on, while Pyrrha goes up to some of the different fighters on break around the room. Not everyone is as easy to convince as Boren. A few fighters are avoided (or rather surreptitiously ignored by both sides; Pyrrha because she doesn't want to deal with it and the others because their go to method of resolving their problems is to try and beat them which doesn't work out so well against the 'Invincible Girl') and other Pyrrha doesn't approach because she fears their skills wont be up to the test. Of the ones she does find, some balk at finding out they're going after a bandit tribe, and others only when the name 'Branwen' is dropped. She had never bothered to investigate bandit rumors before but it seemed like Raven was quite infamous for the strength of her tribe. Which made sense, Raven was a Beacon graduate and she had a Maiden on her side, of course they'd be strong.

Eventually she got lucky with Avery Wilton, a young man with a primarily blue and white outfit. He had a type of old-fashioned coat (Pyrrha couldn't be bothered to remember the name of it) on with gold trim and white breeches. He even had a large hat to complete the ensemble, with a large black feather sticking out of it (he claimed it was from a giant Nevermore he had slain even though everyone knew that wasn't how Grimm worked!). He acted every bit the noble fop, and honestly kind of was one, his family coming from old money. Still, he knew his way around a double barrel shock broadsword, so she figured she'd ask.

He took on a pained look for a moment before smiling widely and saying loudly "Of course, I would be glad to help you best these bandits. No matter how large a warband, I am certain that together there is no force that can best us."

"Alright then, thank you. This is the Branwen tribe we're fighting, there will be other hunters and fighters with us but are you sure that you're ready for this? I know a few other fighters were hesitant." She's surprised by his attitude, she had never taken him to be so willing to help others.

"Ah, well, yes. You see-" his mumblings are interrupted by a girl from across the room.

"You chickening out? Bawk. Bawk, bawk, bawk." The girl was dressed in a what appeared to be a number of belts tied around her chest (through Pyrrha suspected there was some fabric underneath them), and a pair of capri pants. All of them were in purple, though of a darker shade than her namesake, Lavender. Her purple hair was tied in a ponytail (with a white streak, which was new) and she had a flail with multicolored Dust spikes sticking out of it. She was also currently making chicken motions with her arms as she walked near.

Avery sputtered as she got close. "I- I was not. Tell them Pyrrha, I was just saying how I would face any number of terrible bandits. If the great Pyrrha Nikos needs the help of Avery Wilton, well then who am I to refuse? It doesn't matter that they are" he gulps before continuing "The Branwen tribe, I am the noble warrior-" his speechifying, which had begun to get a bit of attention is interrupted by Lavender's laughter, causing most of the other fighters in the gym to shrug and turn back to their own routines.

Pyrrha had no idea how those two were so close together given how wildly different they were, but they were often found hanging around (or more likely arguing) with each other. There was a pool amongst the other fighters betting on whether they'd marry each other or kill each other. Pyrrha didn't bet on such things, seeing them as crass and recognizing that that sort of behaviour would hurt her reputation as the invincible Girl, above it all.

(but if she wasn't she would totally be betting on them marrying and killing each other, both on the same day)

"Hahaha, as if this wasn't totally because I dared you to help someone out the next time someone asked you."

"You swine! You tricked me! You must have known what she was going to ask me" he accused the purple girl of.

"Yup" she admits without an ounce of guilt on her face. "I overheard her while you were busy getting your make-up on."

"It's simple skin care cream, not all of us have mastered the 'uncouth brute' look. You made it sound like someone just wished to spar with me" he says lunging at her, missing as she backs out of the way.

Pyrrha tries to intervene before this gets out of hand "I'm sorry about whatever dispute you have going on, I understand if you don't want to go, I'll find someone else." She hoped that would be the end of it, but Lavender had to chime in from over her shoulder.

"Yeah, it's cool, just back out on your word and prove that you don't care enough to ever help anyone else out."

His face scrunches up in consternation. "I'll hold true to my word, a Wilton won't back down from such a promise. And, of course because I am naturally a helpful person. Ha, my bond on this quest is twofold."

"I'm sorry, I really didn't mean to force you into a situation you didn't want to be in. Really it's fine if you…" He brushes off her words.

"Nonsense, the whole adventure sounds quite bracing. I am eager to go." He doesn't sound like he's forcing the bravado anymore, but Pyrrha's still worried that he might regret this decision in the morning.

"If you think you're going to regret this, you can still back off now. Make sure you're committed before-" If anything her words of dissuasion seem to only get him more committed to go as he interrupts her by taking his sword off his back and planting it in the floor in front of him.

"There's no need to question my resolve, I shall remain eternally committed to this cause! Nothing could hold me back from helping complete this noble endeavour." Pyrrha opens her mouth to say anything else before reconsidering. If he's willing to come than she shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth.

Lavender mock claps at him, "Oooh so brave, so 'noble', catch me before I swoon." It's meant in complete sarcasm but it sprouts a slightly devious idea in Pyrrha's mind.

Turning around brightly she says to Lavender with as much sincerity as she can muster (and she's learned to muster a lot of sincerity for the media) "You're absolutely right Lavender. He really is a great person for doing this, so helpful and brave." Lavender's looking at her like she lost her mind. Perfect. "Not everyone can be this way." Pyrrha doesn't even get to finish her next planned sentence of 'I totally understand why you aren't willing to go' before Lavender is interrupting her.

"What, this? This is nothing, I eat bandits for breakfast. I can totally match this clown." "Pardon me?" She ignores Avery's outburst "Sign me up, I'm going with." The look she gives Pyrrha makes it clear that at this point there would be no way to talk her down from going. At least they should keep each other motivated now, neither one willing to lose face in front of the other.

She takes their scrolls and gets their numbers, letting them know she'll call as soon as the plan is ready. They barely notice her leave as they're in the middle of another argument.

She talks to a couple more people, but no one else is interested so she heads out, happy to have gathered the three she has. This place might have been the biggest most prominent gathering spot she knows of, but there's still a few others she can try, including some individuals she wants to track down.

There are plenty that say no (some nicely, others less so), but Umber Greel is the first to say yes. He has a number of personal trainers that work for him on the estate his family own. In many ways he's like her; his family grew up poor but from a decently gifted warrior line and his success in the arena had won his family much status. He was her junior and she had always suspected he looked up to her (if his spear wasn't a sign being somewhat similar in design to her spear, then the bronze color scheme on his mostly ceremonial armor was a big one). He never managed to achieve quite her flair, her aura of invincibility, but he'd managed to avoid ever getting losing in the younger divisions he had fought in, using his Gravity Dust Net and Spear quite well together. The biggest difference that she could tell between them was that he seemed to enjoy the limelight and famous life (that or he was a far better actor than she was).

She arrives at his house and is greeted by him obviously in the middle of his training, staring shocked at her. He waves off his teachers and rushes from the lawn to greet her. "Pyrrha Nikos! Wow, this is such an honour. My apologies, the place is such a mess" he said to her as he took off his open face helmet. His hair was burgundy with a few blue stripes, and without the guard from his helmet it was easy to see that he had a rather small nose. Irrationally, she felt jealous for a moment; his hair didn't have a strand out of place and he seemed to glow instead of sweat. She'd had to spend hours over the years with make-up artists as they tried to get that look for her instead of her actual after workout appearance, and he got it naturally.

Looking around past him, she was confused. His estate seemed picture perfect. It wasn't quite as big as the ones the 'old money' upper class tended to have around Mistral, which put it at about the same huge size her house had been, after she had become famous but before that fame had led her to asking her parents to move to Argus. The large lawn was perfectly trimmed, the garden well cared for, there was a pond that looked gorgeous, and the mansion (in traditional Mistralian style) looked to be in great condition. She had no clue what he could be talking about.

"It looks great to me." He was beaming at her words, obviously thrilled at his idol's approval. "I'm sorry to intrude, but I have an important matter I'd like to ask your help in." He instantly looked very serious, and very eager.

"This sounds important, should we go inside to talk? My apologies, I'm still dirty from my training." He was a nice enough kid (which was a weird thought; she had stopped thinking of Ruby as a 'kid' even though Umber was a year older than her), but the obvious pedestal her was putting her on made her feel uncomfortable.

"That's fine, this should only take a moment. The Kingdom's been starved for hunters since the attack on Beacon. With everyone else busy me and my team need to take on a group of bandits, the Branwen tribe. I can't reveal all the details but this is a crucial mission, failing would be disastrous for all of Mistral." He's hanging off her every word and she can tell he's on board before he even opens his mouth.

"I would be honoured that you would consider myself to join your team." They exchange scroll details (something that makes him look like his birthday came early) and he's the first one to ask for details about the mission, obviously eager to go. She tells him to keep his schedule clear for the next few days and that they have 10 people so far, including him, but they're hoping to get more. As soon as the team is assembled she'll let him know.

With that done, Pyrrha continues her search as the day stretches onward. The other fighters are hard to pin down, and most of the legitimate fighters she can find refuse, some because they're afraid, others because they don't care enough/are more focused on their career and not willing to take the time out to help. Which is why she's surprised when she finds her next (and rather unexpected) ally by literally bumping into her just before she was thinking of giving up.

"I'm sorry" she says as she turns to face the woman she bumped into on the street. Her hair is a wild, dark, tangled mess, hanging down past her shoulders. Her clothes had rips all over them, nothing quite obscene, but beyond most Mistralian standards of propriety (the tears didn't look exactly random theough…) She is also obviously a faunus, claws on the ends of her fingernails. She doesn't carry any obvious weapons, but she does have armguards on. The woman grunts and moves to keep on walking when something niggles in the back of Pyrrha's mind.

"Wait, you're Mary right? Mary Malken. I remember you, you tried to break from Pit fighting into…" Pyrrha's voice trails off as she remembers what happened.

She was a poor faunus with not enough money to buy any real weapons, (and as Pyrrha later found out the shoddy quality ones she had managed to get all broke before not too long) but she had a vicious streak in her a mile long and her claws to rend into anyone she could get her hands on. She had been trying to make it into a more professional league when Pyrrha had still been an up and comer. Pyrrha had no knowledge of the other girl at the time, was just told she had another opponent to fight. So Pyrrha beat her, easily. Even with Mary's weird semblance that let her grow additional limbs for a short time, Pyrrha crushed her under her heel (metaphorically) and moved on. Everyone on the professional level knew how lopsided the match was going to be, but that didn't stop them from using the results as an excuse to laugh Mary out of professional tournament fighting. Pyrrha heard the full facts afterwards and hadn't seen her since that day, until now.

"Oh gee, the big Mistralian princess remembers me, what an honour" she sarcastically droned. "What do you want this time?"

"I'm sorry I didn't mean to- I didn't know at the time…" Mary waves off her attempted apology.

"Whatever, I still could've made it there, just decided I didn't want to put up with their bullshit anymore. A shame your precious 'prestigious tournament matches' have less honest than fighting in the pit." She's trying to get a reaction from Pyrrha, but is quite surprised when she doesn't get any anger, quite the opposite.

"It truly is. That was part of what fuelled my desire to become a Huntress." She pauses for a moment before realizing she doesn't have anything to lose by asking. "And since you mention it, there is something I could use your help with."

Her face maintains it's resting 'pissed-off-at-everyone-and-everything state, but she raises an eyebrow to show she's intrigued, even with her arms crossed in front of her. "My team and I need help taking out a bandit tribe."

"And you couldn't get enough hunters for one measly little bandit tribe? Did all your tournament friends bail on you too, so now you're stuck asking someone like me?"

"I had greater contacts to my old tournament colleagues, no disrespect meant to you or your fighting; I wouldn't have known where to find you, but since I did bump into you I thought it would be prudent to ask for your aid." She peers deep at Pyrrha, as if searching for any lies or trickery but unable to find any. Pyrrha continues "If you are willing, we'd really appreciate your help taking down the Branwen tribe." Mary's posture stiffens at that, causing Pyrrha to pause for a moment.

"What exactly is the deal with that name? The Branwen name seems to have driven off a lot of people. Why?"

Mary just chuckles darkly at that. "Ah you poor, naïve girl. You really don't know? That incident happened even when you were still 'in the ring', so I guess you just didn't bother to keep up."

Pyrrha blushes in embarrassment "It was, I was quite busy back then." Busy trying to finish her fourth championship and then get out of that fighting to become a huntress. To pursue her destiny.

"Heh, well why don't you talk to Denim. He should be down at The Silver Crest around this time. He'll give you a more complete picture of why everybody else in these parts is nervous of the Branwen tribe." She begins to walk off when Pyrrha calls out.

"Wait, you didn't say if you were willing to go or not." It's a long shot, but she said 'everybody else', which could be referring to just Pyrrha, but it might also mean Mary. Pyrrha hasn't seen her scarred by anything before. The older woman pauses, then turns around slowly.

"You really need to take them down that badly? Alright, fine, you're probably the most decent of all the tournament fighters I've met" Pyrrha thinks she's being damned by faint praise but is willing to let that pass. "If you're still up for fighting them after you hear Denim's story? Then sure, I'll tag along. Just this once though, I got bills to pay and mouths to feed, and I'm assuming you can't afford to pay me for this, can ya?"

Pyrrha looks guiltily away at that. She doesn't really have anything resembling a budget and hadn't even thought of offering to reward anyone for the danger they were going to expose themselves to.

"Thought so. Well then, here's my number, give me a call if you're still down for it." She sticks her hands in her pockets, only her clawed thumbs sticking out as she slouched away. Pyrrha couldn't deny that whatever unknown factor driving people away was worrying her, but she was determined. Everyone else was training hard, Qrow was gathering tons of huntsmen, she could at least do her part and get a few more warriors to help the mission.

The bar that Mary had directed her to actually hadn't seen him for a while, as she was informed by the gruff older man who owned the place. He had a potato in his hand and was peeling it with a large knife when she approached.

"Another one? I don't even want to know what's going on" he grumbled. He mumbled something unintelligible about 'damn huntsmen' that Pyrrha mostly couldn't make out before continuing. "He was quite the regular here the past year, losing himself in his cups more than once. Still, he left for a month before returning one last time to settle up, and I haven't seen him in the past two months."

"Oh, that's a shame, there's a mission I wanted to ask him about."

"Hmm, well at least Denim settled up his tab when he last came here (unlike some people), and I'd heard he was looking for work recently." Pyrrha does her best to not guiltily look away. She doesn't have anything to pay him (and if Lionheart is that strapped for hunters she can't beat he'll have much by way of funds available either, without the councils aid which will take too long), but at the very least she can get the story about what is up with the Branwen tribe. "I've heard he hangs out around the job board by Flinton street."

That area was sort of a crossroads, between the upper, better off parts of Mistral and the lower levels, where more illicit deals went on (those were generalizations of course, there were plenty of good and bad pockets above and below, for anyone who knew where to search). If Denim was working his way out of a bad spot it would fit that he was there. There were a lot of jobs from all levels that one could take there.

Pyrrha got there as the sun was going down. She couldn't instantly find him, but it didn't take long asking around (sometimes she could admit that her fame was useful). She turned a corner and saw Denim standing down the block. It had been years since she had last seen him, but he looked drastically different to her, only the katana on his back remaining the same. He was a good deal older than Pyrrha and most of the other fighters she knew, in his early thirties. He wore a new outfit, a white and brown yukata not the black spikey armor he had worn in the past. His hair which had been completely black before was now almost entirely grey, with only a few specks of black here and there. He didn't have a full beard now, but he had a lot more stubble. The biggest change was the lack of a left arm, which was hard to tell under the yukata, but it looked like it was missing from the shoulder down.

She was starting to get the picture now, but she walked down to him anyways to get the full story. "Denim, it's been too long. Let's catch up?" She subtly indicated at his missing limb with a dip of her head and he smiled thinly.

"I suppose that doesn't sound too bad. There's a café I enjoy nearby." He leads them to a small teashop where it seems like he's a regular based on the staff's familiarity around him (they recognize him before they do her).

After they order some drinks (she follows his suggestion and they both get a type of tea, Pyrrha's never tried that flavour before but it's actually pleasantly refreshing), he starts the conversation. "Well, I suppose you didn't come back to Mistral just to visit a washed-up fighter like myself."

She had heard he got an injury over a year ago that took him out of the tournament scene, but she hadn't put too much thought into it. 'Leaving due to injury' was often a way for an older fighter to save face as they quit, the infirmities of age or other responsibilities dragging them away, a training injury usually exaggerated (aura could do wonders for most wounds over time). Pyrrha didn't think this was from a training accident anymore either.

"I may not have come back directly for that, but I think you know a bit about a problem I'm looking into." He motions for her to continue with his hand. "I wanted to ask you about the Branwen bandit tribe." The room doesn't go silent at her words, not exactly. There is definitely a decrease in volume at her words that picks up soon afterwards. Denim's eyes don't move from her, but his gaze slides off from her face, staring into a dark memory of his past.

He refocuses on her after a full minute. "I'm surprised you're asking about that now, it's been over a year." He gestures to stump on his shoulder, still concealed by the sleeve, but obviously there in how empty the sleeve is.

"I… may not have been as observant of others in my time in the circuit before. I'm sorry." It had been so easy to justify to herself, with how her managers had told her to maintain her image, that Pyrrha couldn't be seen as being overly friendly with her fellow fighters. How some of them had scorn for her and her skill, how others might have seemed distasteful at first glance. She may have been put on a pedestal by the world, but she realized now that there were steps she could have taken to step down, at least a little.

"I understand, you had a lot going on, winning your final tournament and becoming a Huntress." She bites the disagreement from spilling out of her mouth. She knows she could have done more, especially with the help she's gotten today, but it would be rude to interrupt him. She'll settle for finding a way to be better in the future than another apology. "As for the Branwen Bandits? Well, I thought I could fight them. They came across a small town, Ouren, that I happened to be staying in as I headed out on a training trip. My glory days might have been behind me, but I hadn't done too badly in my last tourney, so when the bandits attacked, I struck back. I was ready to beat off those cowardly raiders, even did fight off three of them. They ran off, but before I could chase after them or any others, she appeared."

"She had long black hair, loosely tied up in a ponytail, with a blade revolver at her side" Pyrrha didn't know exactly what that was but made a note to ask Ruby later. "The only visible armor she wore were some red armored gauntlets that went up her forearms and left her fingers open. I could tell right away that she was a lot more dangerous than the other thugs there… Admittedly the mask didn't hurt for intimidation factor." At Pyrrha's questioning look he mentions "Yeah, she had this huge Grimm mask over her face."

"Like the White Fang?" The White Fang had contributed to the attack on Beacon, if they were her too, working with bandits… Well it would seem out of character, but everything Ruby had told Pyrrha about them and Torchwick meant they couldn't trust anything about how the terrorists 'usually' acted.

"Well, kinda?" He scratches his head before amending his statement. "Not really, actually. I haven't seen much of their masks except in the news, but this one was way more elaborate. The color whiter than their grey-white, and hers had red markings on it, closer to what a Grimm would actually have. It didn't leave any openings for her mouth either, covering most of her head, closer to a helmet than a mask really. It still had four slits for eye holes though, but I couldn't see anything but void beyond them." He shivers at the memory and Pyrrha has no doubt that that mask has featured more than once in a nightmare he's had in the past.

"I was still arrogant at the time, I challenged her to a duel. I don't know what exactly I expected, but I wasn't expecting her to talk to me. She offered me chance to flee, or stand down. To save myself and let them take what they wanted. Naturally, I refused, at which point she accepted my duel, introducing herself as Raven Branwen, leader of the Branwen tribe. She laughed and said if I could beat her 'then I'll take my tribe and leave, never to bother this town again'. If I lost she'd 'make me wish I was never born'. A small crowd had gathered behind me, people looking for safety, and I readily accepted her 'terms'. They cheered me on before the duel started. Those cheers died quickly as she cut through my defences in seconds. Her Odachi slipped past my guard after she knocked aside my parry and she cut my left arm." A wind breezes through the tea shop, as if sensing it's the perfect moment to cause his empty sleeve to blow backward wildly.

"I must have missed her first few lightning blows, not realizing how much she had struck at my Aura before she moved to cut my limb off. I was stunned, from how quickly I had lost. Even you never defeated me that quickly." Pyrrha's skill and semblance had meant that he hadn't ever come too close to beating her, but she never would have called him an 'easy fight' either. How powerful was Raven?

"The blood loss also probably contributed to how I stunned I was as well. That's what led to me losing consciousness and getting pulled off by the townsfolk. She just stood there, and in my addled mind, I wondered why the monster didn't finish me off. I had no clue my nightmare was just beginning." He takes a deep breath before continuing "I woke up and found the town had been completely ransacked (later on I would learn it barely survived the Grimm attack that followed; after that the town was abandoned). I had been sent back home, a group of rangers giving me a lift back home, but I was too late. Somehow she had gotten to Mistral ahead of me, located my home. She took or destroyed everything we had, tied up my wife and daughter and let them helplessly watch. I got back just in time to see my life turn to ash."

"I was crippled, and it took me time, many long months to recover. Much of what we had was lost, and I.. I-" he trails off, choking up a few times. Pyrrha moves to try and tell him that he can stop, given how painful this is for him, he raises his hand to cut her off. "Please, I, I can do this, I need to do this. Just… give me a moment." She swallows her words and waits in silence for a few minutes. The rest of the shop appears to have emptied out, the shopkeeper having closed the shop due to how late it's gotten, but she's said nothing to the two of them, and Pyrrha gives the elderly woman an appreciative nod.

He starts up again, his voice cracking a few times, but continuing without any more breaks. "I got stuck in a bad place. Money was tight, my dominant arm was missing, bad luck struck at the worst times. We built a new house and lightning struck it; it caught fire and burned down. A piece of lumbar swung funny in the wind and nearly crushed me and an old friend. Other things like that, 'omens' and misfortune surrounding me to the point that people thought I was cursed." His shoulders slump a bit. "I even started seeing things sometimes. I thought I'd catch a glimpse of her walking in crowded streets, hear her whisper to me, but when I'd turn to face her there wouldn't be anyone there. I was losing my mind!" His head hangs low as he continues. "Cynthia and my little Brownie, they left me. It was good. For them, I was in a bad place and lashing out, yelling and drinking." He pauses for a moment before continuing.

"A few months afterwards, I got a wake up call. Lying in a gutter, rain falling down on me, I realized I needed to change things, that I couldn't carry on like that anymore. The only thing I had left was my sword, so I used it. Took up a few bodyguard jobs here and there, looked intimidating, enough to get a few Lien. I started practicing, I've gotten fairly good at using Lunar Edge in my right hand now" he says, patting the sword strapped to his side.

Pyrrha finally composes herself enough to ask, "How could no one do anything after hearing your story?" She's shocked at how terrible it had gotten for him. Obviously, it was bad for the people in the outlying villages (and that was terrible, truly!) but Pyrrha would have thought that someone in Mistral would respond to this, raise an army or something. This happened well before things got bad after the Battle of Beacon.

He chuckles darkly "Everyone's too afraid. I heard tell that they actually did send a team of hunters to push back the bandits. A bunch of kids younger than me, all fresh out of school and ready to get stomped on by the world. Or Raven's tribe in this case. Three of them were slaughtered, and the fourth quit. Details get a little fuzzy there, some say the heads were found on stakes, others say that the last girl was sent back to Haven with a bag of their body parts as a message for the Headmaster." Pyrrha doubted that one or Lionheart would have been far more nervous when the Branwen name was brought up. "They say the girl broke, or that she left out of disgust for being sent on a suicide mission. Some even say she joined up with those very bandits, so desperate to live she'd turn her back on everything she once held dear. I don't know which of those stories, if any, are true and I don't care. The end point is that nobody wants to risk their lives or their loved ones fighting a (relatively) small bandit tribe. Not after they've seen what happens to people like me." He grimaces and looks away.

Pyrrha's mind is spinning from all this information. Suddenly, everyone's reactions to her requests make a lot more sense. She mentally readjusts how brave the five who agreed to join her must be, after knowing this, what might happen to them. She gulps and looks at his arm, tentatively asking him a question. "That's terrible to hear, I'm really sorry but… why haven't you gotten a new arm yet?"

If he's bothered at all by her question he doesn't show it (even seeming to relax a little more now that she's off the direct topic of what happened to him). "Been able to pay off my debts, make a bit to get by. Hopefully one day I'll be able to afford a proper replacement arm. I've gotten good enough at using my right for now, and they take some time to acclimate to, so I'm trying to save up for one of the higher end Atlas ones… Ah, you aren't here to listen to me ramble, you're here to ask me about my arm right? Well, now you know." He pauses for a moment before asking her "Why are you so interested now? Honestly, not complaining or taking a jab there, I just thought I'd ask a question of my own since I satisfied your curiosity."

This time it's Pyrrha who takes a moment to answer, and when she does speak her voice is very quiet. "I was arranging a mission to attack her tribe."

His hand curls into a fist and his voice is hoarse when he responds. "Are you crazy girl? I just told you what happened to anyone who stands up to them and you're going to march after death itself? Don't go thinking you're 'Invincible' just because you were given a fancy titl-"

"I'm NOT!" She slams her fists on the table, stunning him into silence as tears well in the former champion's eyes. "I know better than anyone that I'm not invincible. That I can lose… so much." Jaune's face flashes behind her eyes for just a moment, a memory of what's gone.

"And knowing that… You're still going to fight them?

Pyrrha's hands unclench and slide to a rest on the table, and notices it's trembling. She traces the motion to his arm resting on the other side, ever so slightly shaking. Has it been this way the whole time? He's been that traumatized by Raven?

It's not an unreasonable response, she knows more than enough worrying details. Raven sounds more horrible and terrifying than she had before, and Denim doesn't even know that she has the Spring Maiden as well, someone as strong as Cinder. She starts to question her purpose. Why should she sacrifice herself for Ozpin and Qrow? Go out and die, just so they can get their precious Relic? If she died in some bandit camp in the middle of nowhere, how could she get her vengeance on Cinder? Pyrrha's emerald eyes meet his weary gaze and she opens her mouth to tell him that she won't fight her. Pyrrha's tired of playing that role, of… fulfilling her destiny.

No words come out, her jaws slowly close again. She wanted to refuse it, so badly before, would she do so again here? Which of her friends will die this time? Ren? Nora? Or would going be the choice that led them to their deaths? It might be but, Ruby… She would go. Even if no one else went, she'd do the right thing and try to bring the Spring Maiden back.

Pyrrha hadn't known the younger girl that well before the Battle of Beacon. Oh, she knew some, that she used a Sniper-Scythe, that she always wore a red cloak (even in school uniform) and led Team RWBY, which had been close to Juniper since day one. Before that even, Jaune had once mentioned that Ruby had been the first friend he had made at Beacon, meeting her before the opening speech. It was only on this journey that Pyrrha had gotten to know her better.

Ruby's weapon was (ridiculously over) designed by herself, based off of her Uncle's weapon, and now her late friend Penny's as well. The red cloak was a reminder of her mother, her inspiration for hunting. She was gifted, a prodigy that outshone even Pyrrha, which most people had held as the gold standard for skill. Her little red reaper was funny, noble and kind. She gave a helping hand to everyone she could, never asking for anything in return. She could be overly eager to prove herself, self-conscious of her age and wanting to prove she could stand on the same level as her friends (even when she should ask for help sometimes). Ruby wanted to be 'normal' and shunned praise, but at the same time had no real idea of what normal really looked like. She could goof off at times, but when she was focused, she dedicated everything to what she was doing, trained harder than anyone Pyrrha knew. Ruby could be shy when it came to talking to others, but she was more than capable of standing her ground against anyone trying to push her around. Brave, she'd leap into any fray to save someone, anyone, and her courage could inspire others to do the same. She was driven, and even more implacable than Jaune when she chose to do something. Pyrrha didn't know when the small crimson warrior had wormed her way deep in Pyrrha's heart, but she had, as much as any member of her team.

She also knew that there would be no talking Ruby out of this. Being a hero, saving people, and fighting monsters, it was in Ruby's blood, in her eyes, in her very soul. All of those traits would inspire people to follow her as a great leader some day, had already inspired Pyrrha to keep on going when she had all but given up.

Pyrrha was still scared. Her belief in Ruby didn't wash away her fears of the unknown, of the threats that lay ahead but- She saw Jaune again, from a memory of his last day at Beacon, standing in front of her. 'The Pyrrha Nikos I know would never back down from a challenge, and if you really believe it's your destiny to save the world, then you can't let anything stand in your way'.

Her final goal had taken a few winding turns, but maybe if she could save Ruby, then she really could save the world. "Thanks, Jaune" she whispers, smiling at the fading memory. Pyrrha's still blinking a few of the last tears out of her face when she stands up and faces Denim. He's looking a bit confused at her, but as she speaks to him some semblance of comprehension appears on his face.

"I'm still going. I can't explain all the reasons to you, but this is important and I have to go on this mission. It's not just my life at risk if I don't go. I know that this must have been very hard for you, so thank you so much for telling me everything." She bows low to him before walking around the table. "I wish you the best" Pyrrha finishes by leaving some Lien on the table to cover the costs of the tea.

She's walking out the door when she hears him say something to her, though she can't make out what it is at first. "I'm sorry? Pardon?"

He clears his throat "… I'm going with you."

"What?" The four-time champion asks, and he's gazing back at her as if he's just as surprised as her that she managed to say it, before he settles on a more determined expression.

"You asked because the other fighters told you about what she did to me, because you're looking into fighting her yourself, right" Pyrrha nods after a moment, that being mostly true, even if some of the details on who's with her or what the groups specific plans are aren't quite correct. "I'm joining your fight against Raven." He pulls out his katana in one smooth motion and plants it in the ground in front of her, shocking her slightly. "You'll have my blade at your side when you face her.

"That's… I mean, thank you, but I can't ask this of you. You're just getting yourself back together by your own admission. Don't throw it all away on revenge-"

"Then it's a good thing that this isn't revenge then. This is me reclaiming what she stole from me." He follows Pyrrha's gaze to his missing arm and shakes his head. "Not my arm, I won't get that back from her. My…" he struggles with the word for a moment. "Identity? No, my Dignity. She used me as a symbol of her conquest, of the power she has, and used me to spread fear for her. Every day I walked this city, beaten and broken, I spread fear of her better than any town crier ever could. Even to this day, when the people see me, that message is still there." Pyrrha can't deny that in the slightest after everything she's seen of the other fighters today. "I may die in this battle, but I will never again serve as her messenger. I'll send a new message, that tyranny like Raven's must be stood up against no matter the cost."

Pyrrha holds his gaze for a moment and finds no wavering in his determination. She clasps his blade and pulls it out of the ground, handing it back to him hilt first. "In that case, we would be honored to have you by our side." He grins and takes the sword back, sheathing it once more.

Pyrrha gets back to the house at nighttime, more exhausted than she had ever anticipated, but still smiling softly. The day might not have gone as she had expected, but she had learned tons and managed to get six more fighters on their side. She opened the door, ready to burst in and tell everyone what had happened but was stopped dead by the sight in front of her. Blinking twice, as if to convince herself that she wasn't seeing things, she said "Yang? Weiss?"

A/N: So, looks like there's going to be OCs here. I knew this was an inevitability, but I was trying to push it off as long as possible. The story is supposed to be about exploring the difference between Jaune and Pyrrha dying and the other one in there, pushing in an Original Character early on seems to defeat the purpose. Yet as the story goes it's an absolute necessity as we move past the bounds of canon and there aren't any known characters here that could fill in this place. I hope you enjoyed the characters I did come up with and they all seemed to make sense and are hopefully interesting and fun too.

Also, it looks like all those characters and details made this chapter waaay longer than I had anticipated. Whoops. Hopefully I'll get the chance to show Pyrrha's reactions to Yang and Weiss' arrival/presence later but this chapter was already getting quite long enough.


	17. Chapter 17 - Reunion

Chapter 17 – Reunion

Her sister was home! Well, not home actually, but here, which was kind of the opposite of being back in Vale, but way better because Yang was with her again and that was all that mattered.

And then it turned out it was even better than that, cause Weiss was back too! Somehow Yang had rescued Ruby's old partner. The thought passed through her mind and caused a flicker of… Ruby wasn't sure, but it wasn't good. Weiss wasn't her 'old' partner, and yet at the same time Ruby had really formed a bond with Pyrrha and had become partners with her too, just like she had with the 'Ice Queen'.

Ruby also heard that Yang had rescued Weiss from her mom. Raven, the leader of a bandit tribe, and she held the Spring Maiden. 'Held' was a nice way to look at it, but it wasn't right, didn't have the correct connotations. From everything she had heard, the Spring Maiden, Vernal, wanted to be there (also how did all the Maiden's manage to line their names up so well? Cinder's last name was Fall and she became the Fall Maiden, and Vernal was the Spring Maiden).

Ruby had no problem fighting against bandits, just like she had been totally willing to fight against Torchwick. They were bad people who were willing to kill or at least hurt and steal from other people just to get their way. It was wrong, and Ruby swore that she would be a huntress, and that meant fighting against bad people too not just monsters. She would just try to catch them, so they could be locked up, not wanting to kill them if she could (as horrible as Torchwick was, Ruby would have tried to save him from getting eaten had she been able to, it was a terrible way to go). This was more than just locking her up and putting her away, though. They needed to get her Maiden to open the vault to the Relic, but what if she wouldn't do it? Would they have to force her? Kill her to make one of them the new Maiden? She saw her uncle and Ozpin exchange some dark glances when they thought no one was looking. A couple of times it was actually pretty funny, because she was pretty sure based on the confused (and slightly scared) expressions that he gave back it was Oscar in control those times.

That was something to get used to. Oscar was a good kid (look he's a whole year younger than her, it counts, she can call him that, whereas she is obviously a mature woman) and he had good taste in comics from what they've chatted about. It's still weird to deal with her Headmaster suddenly talking to her with his voice, but still good every time after getting over that initial bit of shock each time. Ozpin's an incredible huntsman and knowing that he's still around, that he didn't truly die with Beacon? It fills the scarlet reaper's heart with hope, even as she knows they have to face new challenges.

Enough about that stuff though, she's busy enjoying a party! Ren whipped up a feast for them (Ruby saved a portion for Pyrrha who still hadn't come back yet) and now they're busy watching an arm wrestling contest between Yang (with her awesome new arm, top of the Atlas line, with shotgun blasts built in way slimmer than her old bracers and apparently lostnostrength…) and Nora. "C'mon Yang, you can't lose to a girl in a skirt!"

"Ruby, you wear a skirt" Weiss dryly said.

"Weiss, you aren't cheering hard enough!" Ruby said, shaking Weiss.

Everyone was shocked silent when Yang's arm was sent flying off, pinning Nora to the wall. That was amazing! Yang's arm reattached easily, yet it clicked in sturdily, there must be next to no chance of it being pulled off if Yang didn't trigger it herself.

"Yang? Weiss?" Ruby turns to the door and sees that Pyrrha has come back. She looks paler than usual, like something's shook her up. Ruby knew it was a surprise that they came back but she didn't think it would be that shocking to Pyrrha (though if she caught Yang in the middle of putting her arm back on that might have been a bit much for a first glance).

"Pyrrha, you're back!" Ruby says, bounding up to greet her. "How did your trip go? Yang and Weiss are here! I saved you some food. Have you eaten yet or do you want tea?"

"I, uh, yes. It went well, I had, well, have a lot to tell you, to tell everyone really, but I think it can wait for a moment. I actually already had some tea, but food sounds wonderful." Pyrrha manages to string out a response to Ruby's rapid stream of questions and comments. She looks over the younger girl at Weiss and Yang. "How did you two get here? I'm sorry I didn't mean to be so surprised, I'm glad you're here, I just didn't realize you two would be coming."

"That's fine P-money, I got a little help getting back…" Yang pauses for a moment and seems uncharacteristically frustrated and down. "From my mother, Raven." Ruby passes Pyrrha her food, only to have to rapidly react and catch it again as Pyrrha lets it slip through her fingers.

"Raven!? She's your-" Pyrrha glances at Ruby, her gaze asking many questions, which Ruby tries her best to answer with a gaze of her own explaining that 'no, I haven't told them about our mission or Ozpin or any of that yet, we've just been greeting them again because it's been months and I just wanted a moment to relax with my sister and Weiss before all that!' She isn't sure how well her message is received.

"Yeah, she's my mother. Is that a problem?" Yang asks folding her arms at Pyrrha and staring at her from over Ruby's shoulder.

Ruby's feeling a little uncomfortable standing in the middle between Pyrrha and Yang, but luckily Pyrrha takes her bowl and steps to the side. "I'm sorry for my reaction. However you got here, it's good, I've just had a long day. If you'll excuse me for a moment." That seems to set Yang at ease as Pyrrha heads off to the kitchen.

The conversation continues from there as they have their tea and relax some more, but the mood has taken a minor hit from before. It isn't too noticeable as the topic shifts to the slightly more serious topic of how they've all grown and what they would have told themselves if they had a chance to talk to themselves back when they first began at Beacon.

Pyrrha still hasn't returned yet and Ruby finds her brooding (she calls it 'being deep in thought, but Ruby knows her well enough to know that it totally means that Pyrrha is brooding) in the kitchen, crouched over the table, the empty bowl in front of her. Ruby opens her mouth to speak up after a moment but Pyrrha speaks first, in barely a whisper. "I would tell her to get stronger, no matter what."

"Huh?"

In a slightly louder volume she says "The question was what you would tell your younger self. I overheard it, and that's my answer. I'd tell that stupid girl that there was no 'normal life' destined for her."

"Pyrrha-"

"-I'd tell her that Ozpin's a tool but to _leap_ on his offer when he gave it. that she wasn't anywhere near as strong as she thought she was. The 'Invincible Girl' was a lie told so long that even she bought into it, and she was a fool for doing so." Ruby settles down into the chair beside her and awkwardly pats her shoulder. Pyrrha turns up at Ruby and pastes a weak smile on her face. "It's ok though, however hard it was, I've learned now. I know better and I won't be making those mistakes again."

That… doesn't sound good to Ruby, but she doesn't have much to counter that with, at least nothing she thinks Pyrrha would listen to in this state. "Pyrrha, just make sure not to forget about having fun and good times, ok? Even if you think we can't 'live a normal life'." Fighting an evil master of all Grimm, may not be normal, but that doesn't mean that everything has to be dour all the time.

"Thank you, Ruby. You've helped me out a lot, and I will try to remember that."

"Good. Did things go badly on your trip to the city?" Ruby couldn't tell what was up, Pyrrha had Akouo strapped to her back again and from what little glimpses she had gotten of the weapon, it looked like it had been upgraded too. Pyrrha seems to be in quite a state, but she doesn't know how badly it could have gone to cause that (Uncle Qrow faced quite a few failures to get more Hunters over the past few days, and while upset, even he didn't seem that badly impacted his failures.

"No, they actually went well, for the most part. I just learned some… distressing news towards the end." She sits up straight and says "Good news first: Akouo is doing better than ever" Pyrrha says unslinging the shield from her back. It looks amazing, fully folded out and with that 'new weapon gleam'.

"Sweet! Did the Dust line calibration work? I know my model seems a little fiddly to some, but I assure you it's worth it and can totally work so long as you-"

"Yes, yes, it seems to be working just fine." Pyrrha demonstrates by pressing a button on it and… yes! There's a faint buzzing in the air. The Lightning Dust must be working perfectly. Electrical attacks aren't the flashiest and don't work quite as well against Grimm as they do on people, but they're still pretty effective. It's going to be even better in team combinations, especially with Nora, this opens up a lot of options with her Semblance. There are moves where Pyrrha can throw her shield at an enemy and get them to dodge, just so the hit boosts Nora, or if they're wrestling Pyrrha can shock both of them to weaken the enemy and empower Nora, and it can be used to stun a foe so Ren can unleash a barrage or prep an Aura strike, oh and we'll have to test it to see if it works like I hoped with your Semblance for an Electro Magnetic Pulse option…

Ruby gets distracted from her thoughts by Pyrrha giggling a bit. She mutters something about "Yes, I think you two would get along just fine."

"Huh?"

"Oh, it's just, well the blacksmith I had do the upgrades on Akouo mentioned they were top notch. Anyways, you already know pretty much everything about my shield with the upgrade ideas you helped me hammer out, I want to learn more about your 'sweetheart'."

Ruby's eyes were sparkling with delight, she loved getting to talk about her Rose and she was glad that Pyrrha seemed almost as enthusiastic about weapons as her today. "Mechanical Rose is the best (no offence to Milo & Akouo). She can switch from storage mode to regular Sniper form (with Laser Burst mode for all shooting configurations), Sword form and Scythe form. It also has a number of pseudo modes, a bulkier shooting mode closer to storage mode than sniper but still capable of firing shots, good for when the length would get in the way, and a Halberd form, which is mostly just the scythe tipped upward, which is great for extra reach and downward thrusts for maximum power… As Ruby explains her weapon she points at the different levers and switches that are needed for it's different capabilities, and gives some annotations on the inner workings. Pyrrha's face is screwed up in concentration as she tries to take in all the different features of Mechanical Rose.

"… and that's where it connects the wire from my sweetheart to the bracer on my wrist. The tailspike has a spool attached as well and can be connected to the bracer as well. I can throw it to pull in enemies or as a grappling tool."

"Wow, that is quite a weapon Ruby." Pyrrha pauses for a moment before continuing "That- Mechanical Rose wasn't it's first name, was it?" Ruby's silent at that, getting what Pyrrha is talking about but unable to speak up, to say anything.

"I hadn't recognized the changes you made at first. I only saw her weapons on that day, and it had been a hectic one, the sword form is a fair bit thicker and slightly taller too now… that's made from Penny's pa- Penny's weapon isn't it? The one you saved me with at the Vytal Festival."

"Yeah" Ruby manages to say, her voice not much more than a whisper. This isn't what she wanted, but she can't manage much more than that before Pyrrha starts talking again.

"I'm sorry. Everything… a lot happened to you too. I wanted to ask, to make sure that you were doing alright."

Ruby's eyes are watering a bit from the emotions this conversation has triggered. "Damn it, I didn't want it to be like this. I made Mechanical Rose as a way to always remember Penny, to have a part of her with me wherever I go. So I could remember all the good times, not just the tragedy at the end." Ruby raises her gaze to meet Pyrrha's in the eyes and she's smiling now. "Penny might be gone, but I'll make her dream come true. So long as she's by my side she really will end up saving the world." Ruby shifts her weapon into sword and holds it up by her side, both of them gazing at it.

There's a long minute where both of them are just silent before Pyrrha breaks the silence. "Ruby, that's incredible. You really are amazing." Ruby blushes and ducks her head down to the side in response of the admiration she's getting from Pyrrha's gaze.

"Well, I mean, it's what we're all doing really. Helping Ozpin fight Salem. I just, it felt right. It's been more work mastering the new modes and everything it can do, but once I perfect my new forms I'll be stronger than ever."

"You're well on your way, you had great control of it on our journey here and you've been getting better and better in our training sessions. You managed to add all those new features without losing anything?"

"I did have to get rid of the Dust cartridge slot, so no more specialty shots like that. The laser fire mode is as strong as most and more consistent, but the energy pack to fuel it takes up just that little bit more of space. That's the only thing though."

"That's incredible, really. There was something else I did, it actually took most of the day." Ruby supposes that makes sense, not everyone would spend an entire day out and just talk about weapons like she would.

Uncle Qrow suddenly enters the room. "There you two are. We gotta group meeting so c'mon. We need to get Yang and Weiss up to speed." Ruby hides her grimace. She had hoped for a bit more fun carefree time before then, but she understands and she wasn't wanting to keep any of these secrets hidden from them. She glances over at the taller girl, inquiring with a glance what she had just been about to say. Pyrrha just shakes her head though.

"It's fine, I'd need to talk to the group about most of this anyways. Let's go." She and Qrow head out of the kitchen toward the living room with all those couches, Ruby following after them.


	18. Chapter 18 - Commitment

Chapter 18 – Commitment

Yang and Weiss are given the run down of all the details Ozpin had been keeping secret from them. The shock and disbelief are readily apparent on their faces, and Pyrrha isn't so caught up in her anger that she can't notice it in them like she was when Qrow told the others in the forest.

There are more than a few moments when the two of them told their own tales of their journey's after the Battle of Beacon, that at times showed some less than stellar moments on their parts. She does her absolute best not to hold their reactions to anything against the two of them. Yang, from everything she had told them, had quite the confrontation with her mother (not her 'mom', that was Summer Rose) on top of the trauma she endured at the Battle of Beacon. Pyrrha had been driven hard by her mother (both her parents, really), but she hadn't ever once even felt abandoned by her, let alone have it actually happen like Yang had. Weiss, as much as she rubbed her the wrong way when they first met, the company heiress has matured quite well and the fact that she came all this way to help her partner speaks volumes (and realistically, any issues Pyrrha would have with her must stem more from Pyrrha's own disappointment at the loss of her new partner, something Pyrrha couldn't blame her for). They also seem to be having difficulty accepting the new reality Ozpin's informing them of.

"I can't believe this… even after what Raven showed us none of it seems to make sense" Yang comments. It makes perfect sense, you just have to accept that are lives are thrown away by two immortal b- Pyrrha cuts off that line of thought before it can build up into rage again, that won't be helpful.

"So, you've been an immortal wizard all this time, and now you're a little boy? You'll forgive us if that's a bit much to believe, even if we can accept 'magic'." Weiss says looking at Ozpin, possessing Oscar's body.

"Believe it! Cute Boy Ozpin will help us beat the Big Bad Salem and make everything better." Pyrrha would normally smile at Nora's zany optimism, but it looks like even Ozpin can't seem to believe that given the frown on his face (though that might be from the pain of Nora pulling on his cheeks as she spoke).

Ozpin walks a small distance away before turning to face the entire group. "All of what I've said is true. The Relics, the four Maidens I made, Salem, I haven't lied at all. Now I understand that this is a lot to take in, and even more to choose to undertake. I won't blame you if you decide not to take up arms in my cause. But if you agree, I expect you to follow me all the way through. There is no shame in abstaining, only in retreat."

His words hang heavy in the air as Pyrrha grinds over them. Those concepts, of taking up arms and dedicating yourself to a warriors life, or abandoning it to live a more moderate life, without the great honours bestowed upon a warrior, but without any shame either, still able to live a good life and be a good person away from the fighting… It's a concept of Mistral and Ozpin is echoing it here, his words slightly shifted by the feel of the people in the room. Or rather, Mistral likely echoed _his_ virtues. He hasn't stated exactly how old he is, but he must be centuries, if not millennia old for the tales to be so forgotten, the truth so obscured (that or his networks are so efficient that Pyrrha would be quite scared at how quickly he could conceal vast amounts of history as mere fairy tales). Mistral could well and be predicated on his ideals, he certainly would have had a guiding hand in how it was made and flourished. It makes her wonder how many of the heroes she looked up to were actually him in disguise, and she doesn't think she wants that question answered.

"All right then, we'll need to plan our next move" Ozpin says, seeming to assume that everyone managed to consider it in the span of a few seconds. Pyrrha saw Ren and Nora exchange looks, discussing it amongst themselves in their own way, but it looked like they were still deciding.

"For the mom-" Yang gets up from her seat on the couch interrupting the old wizard. Pyrrha tenses, ever so slightly, remembering what Yang said about her mother offering the blond brawler a place in her tribe. Remembering what Denim said about Raven Branwen and her merry band of murderous thugs. Pyrrha was glad no one here had a semblance to read thoughts, as for just a second thoughts passed her mind of how much Yang liked getting into a scrap and clinically evaluating how much of a threat Yang would be if she tried to leave. Pyrrha immediately discarded it, knowing that Yang was a fellow huntress and a friend, or at least a friendly acquaintance (But she couldn't get rid of all such thoughts, however uncharitable, of how her mother had been a huntress once too and she carried her lineage).

"I'm willing to stay on board… if Ruby is." Ruby looks shocked at this, though Pyrrha can totally gets it. Ruby has been the driving force for them and she's the one who gave the older redhead courage and hope when she thought they were lost. Pyrrha has worked her best to forgive Ozpin for what happened at Beacon, but a seed of resentment is still there and after all the secrets she's not sure how much she trusts him to lead them. She does trust Ruby, to fight by her side, and one day, Pyrrha knows that there will be many people on Remnant that follow the silver eyed-huntress. She's a born leader and warrior, someone they'll need to fight Salem and her minions like Cinder (of course, with Ruby's real partner around Pyrrha knows she'll have to change her plans about having the young huntress help her fight Cinder; that fight will just have to be one she fights on her own).

Would Pyrrha fight for Oz if Ruby wasn't around? Probably, but only so long as he was her best shot at killing Cinder. "This is it, correct? If we choose to join now, you'll be fully bringing us into the fold as members of your 'Circle', just as we'll be fully committed to your fight against Salem. No more secrets kept from us to be doled out when you feel like it?" She sees Ruby staring up at her from where the younger girl is sitting on the couch and realizes that she's gotten up at some point during her questions to Ozpin.

Ozpin looks her in the eye with an unnerving intensity. "Yes, Miss Nikos. I promise, I've already told you everything I know."

Ruby's voice pipes up "Does that include stuff like Dr. Merlot?" Everyone turns to look at her, even Qrow and her old teammates look confused before turning to Ozpin. "You said to keep that mission on the down low after I fought his mutated Grimm." The gazes on him turn to accusatory glares.

"Ozpin what the hell? You never told me about that, I thought that bastard died with the fall of Mountain Glen." Even Qrow didn't know the truth? Surprising.

"As had I, until just before the Vytal festival when Ruby stumbled upon it. I apologize for not informing you, all of you, sooner. At the time I was distracted with the thought of the saboteurs and Amber's fate, and afterwards… well it completely slipped my mind until you mentioned it Miss Rose. I don't expect that Dr. Merlot should be a major problem in the future with how you destroyed his main facility, but please feel free to tell everyone about the mission you went on."

Pyrrha's shoulders loosen up a bit at that, he really does seem contrite and not like he was trying to hide it. Ozpin has lived for ages, he wouldn't have the time to tell them literally every detail about what he's done in it. She is trying to be fair to him, as much as she's still upset. "After your story, I have some news for everyone too, about our mission here" Pyrrha says before motioning a nervous Ruby to speak. Even now it looks like she can be put on the spot.

"Well, I went inside his facility and then went Wha-cha! Ka-pow! This weird cyborg guy-"

"Hey!"

"Not like you sis, I swear! He had a lot more mechanical parts too, including an eerie red glowing eye replacement. The machine parts all looked a little… weird, but I didn't get a good look at him from my scroll screen. Anyways, after I got myself shipped onto the place Ozpin guided me through. He argued with Dr. Merlot a bit then I killed his green Grimm and white and red robots and saved the day."

Ruby's holding a triumphant 'V for victory' handsign and Pyrrha can practically see everyone else in the room sweatdrop. "Uh, Rubes, maybe tell us what the frick actually went on?" At her sister's sudden drooping, Yang amends "It's just, I'm a little confused and don't know what really happened. Start from the beginning maybe?"

"Oh, alright. I guess it began when I got a mission from Professor Port over the summer break to investigate some trouble with the security system in Forever Fall…"


	19. Chapter 19 - Finest Hour

Chapter 19 – Finest Hour

Those missions felt like a lifetime ago, so much so that Ruby almost forgot how tough they'd been. Everyone else had been busy over the summer break so Ruby had volunteered for a simple request of Professor Port (actually, he had pinned her in a hallway and desperate to get out of another of his boring stories she offered to check on the security system he had offhandedly mentioned as the prologue to his story, but Ruby figured she wouldn't mention that part).

"So, apparently the school has- had a security system (which I was pretty shocked by), and there was something going wrong so I went to check on it." Ruby can feel the disbelieving looks on everyone's faces at that, like it was obvious. How was she supposed to know that? Before the mission Ruby just thought that the Grimm were warded off from the school by huntresses like her. She spent tons of time training killing the Grimm there and she thought others did too, it wasn't like Signal had needed anything like that to keep it safe. Sure, Patch was smaller than Vale, but even proportionally, there were way less Grimm around there than there had been at Beacon.

Blushing at her obvious ignorance that didn't seem to be shared by anyone in the room (though at least Pyrrha threw her an encouraging smile), Ruby continued. "Anyways, there were these weird devices stuck on the defense systems, with a symbol on them, relating to Merlot Industries, as well as some cages used to contain Grimm with the same symbol on them."

"Merlot? They used to be a rival of my father and the Atlas military long ago" her partner says, surprised when everyone turns to look at her. "What? I don't really know much about them, just that they made robotics and my father mentioned that Merlot was a fool."

"On that front we agree, though I suspect I feel that way for different reasons than Jaques Schnee. Please continue with the story" Ozpin says, motioning for her to go on with his cane.

"Right, Doctor Oobleck told me about the next part, a mission to investigate Mountain Glenn, to try and find any historical connection to where Merlot Industries once was and what was going on now. I went there, fought some more Grimm-"

"Wait, more Grimm? You didn't mention any Grimm before." Yang accuses narrowing her eyes suspiciously at Ruby.

"Yeah there were Grimm, it was Forever Fall and Mountain Glenn, I haven't even gotten to the special Grimm yet. I suppose there were a few more than usual around there."

"'Special Grimm'? How many more?"

"I dunno, I killed a couple hundred?" Her voice tilts upwards at that, like it's a question more because she didn't keep exact track of the numbers. Most of the other students eyes bulge at that number and Qrow whistles appreciatively. "Most of them weren't even that tough, mostly creeps and Beowolves, only a couple dozen Alphas and Boarbatusks. I didn't even run into an Ursa until Mountain Glenn." That doesn't seem to placate Yang's concerns or make anyone think she has normal knees but Ruby plows on ahead with her story.

"Mountain Glen is kinda still in shambles, so Doctor Oobleck directs me to an old waterway I can use. More Grimm are fought all about, Crescent Rose slices them to bits, I found the facility… and then it blew up and I fell underground."

"Rubes…" Yang looks worried, which Ruby doesn't get. She's obviously totally fine and everything's good.

"Following the underground path I found an old Dust mining operation, and that's where I discovered the Green Grimm."

"Green Grimm? Were they like, green with envy or did some paint fall on them? Ooh, can we-"

"-We cannot paint the Grimm we find in our colors" Ren interrupts Nora's idea, having anticipated it.

"Says you, apparently you already get Grimm in your color mister Green" Nora rebuts.

Ruby speaks up again, trying to get things back on track so she can get this story over with (and then learn what Pyrrha was up to). "No, the Grimm were bigger, usually with green crystal looking spikes sticking out of them along with their usual black skin and white armor pieces. Doctor Oobleck said they were mutated in some way, but there were only mutated Creeps in the tunnel. They weren't much stronger than a regular Creep, but after being damaged a bit they'd blow up for a lot of damage, and one blowing up would trigger the others." That part was particularly unpleasant. A couple times Ruby's Aura was severely depleted by them exploding and more than once they got close to finishing her by a couple surrounding her while she was occupied with other Grimm. Without her semblance to rush away those times they might have ended her.

"Oh, there was a bomb there too, attached to a mine cart."

"A bomb!?" Ruby winces at Yang's shout, though she gets she might have buried the lead there, even if the mutated Grimm are the important part.

"It was a trap set to blow up anyone who tried to investigate. I couldn't move it off the tracks without triggering it, but Doctor Oobleck told me about the pit at the end of the tracks I could send it into, using the Dust nearby to power the cart. The mutated Grimm were tricky at first, but then I figured our how to use them to my advantage, drawing them away from the cart, shooting them, then letting them blow up the rest of the Grimm nearby, letting me slip away to get more Dust."

"Well done Miss Rose, that was indeed a clever stratagem. I'm glad to see that I certainly did not err in making you team leader." Ruby blushes momentarily at the praise, it's nice to hear, even if she doesn't think it's all that incredible a tactical action.

"I managed to send the cart down a hole in the mountain, so when it blew up it didn't bring down the mountain on me or anything. Doctor Oobleck was worried about what the trap could mean, but I had to keep on going ahead. I followed the rest of the tracks back out where they led to Forever Fall again, but to a part I'd never been near before." It had been way out from the school, probably further away than the city of Vale was from Beacon.

"There were more containers there with that Doctor Merlot logo and some 'keys' to doors hidden about. The biggest thing was more of those green Grimm, some beowolves this time. They looked bigger than most Alphas, particularly in the shoulders. Those beowolves were faster, stronger, and way tougher than regular Alphas." Ruby had been caught off guard by their claws once or twice and they had been tearing through her Aura in no time. Once she got used to them she was able to take them out with only a bit more difficulty, but it had still been worrying the first time. Given how Yang had a death grip on the couch arm beside her, Ruby felt it was fine to skip over the specifics of how close things had gotten for her, though she should make sure to cover their other ability. "They could also slam the ground and make these green crystalline spikes shoot out from it in a line. The crystals looked like the ones sticking out of their backs." Grimm sometimes had weird abilities, particularly older one, but that one was really odd. It almost felt like Dust casting, like Weiss could do with Ice Dust.

"There was a ship moving these crates about, Doctor Oobleck said it was an active Merlot ship and he had to inform Ozpin and that I should investigate without being seen, which I did… unfortunately I kinda ended up inside a crate just before it got picked up and added onto the boat. I, uh, I didn't get found out though, so technically I did exactly what Oobleck said." She scratches the back of her head sheepishly, but it doesn't look like anyone is buying it. She puffs out her cheeks. It let her infiltrate and stop Merlot's evil plans! Plus she didn't get found out till she was well and on the island, so Ruby maintains that she's a better stowaway than Sun.

"Ruby?" Pyrrha says questioningly prompting Ruby out of her thoughts and to continue the story again.

"Right, uh, I snuck of the ship when it reached land on this island but I couldn't get in contact with Doctor Oobleck. The island was deserted, no people in sight at all, but tons of Grimm and also a couple robots. The robots were red and could protect themselves with a force field, like aura but also not. They had polearms as well and tried to cut me up but I was way too fast." Ruby was too fast for them, but they weren't bad at using their weapons, per se. Nowhere near her level, but way better than even the new Atlesian Knights 200. Their teamwork in particular was very good and could make it tough to fight them in groups.

"I eventually found a few communication towers and started messing with them to clear up the signal, but just before it could get to him on the last tower when Doctor Merlot started talking to me. I didn't know who they were at the time, it was audio only, but Oobleck wasn't there any more. Merlot said I was the first visitor to ever arrive on his island and said I was what he needed for an experiment."

"He showed his face then as I fought off a bunch of Grimm, but then Ozpin started talking to me." Ruby gestures to the wizard.

"I did indeed communicate with you and Doctor Merlot, but I didn't have boots on the ground. You'll likely be able to finish this story better than I would." He gestures for Ruby to continue.

"So, him and Ozpin are talking about how they used to be friends or something, though Ozpin really didn't seem to like him or feel that way. Apparently Doctor Merlot was behind Mountain Glen, or at least had a hand in it or something. He made things worse there somehow." Ruby hadn't been paying tons of attention then, more focused on fighting off her enemies at the time.

"Merlot only seemed to care about science, he said that any sacrifices he made were worth it." Ruby hadn't understood at the time, couldn't wrap her head around how anyone could sacrifice or even put tons of people at risk to the Grimm only to serve their own ends, could barely comprehend the concept at the time. Now? She understood it all too well with Roman and Cinder, even if she still disagreed with it with every fiber of her being.

He had claimed that his research advanced Artificial Intelligence. She refused to believe his claims that he was responsible in any way for the advancements in robotics needed for someone as wonderful as Penny. Ruby also knows that Penny was like her, she wouldn't have wanted innocents to be hurt

She grits her teeth before continuing in a lower voice. "I fought through more Grimm and came across this massive pipeline system and this green… goop on the ground which Merlot was collecting. There were more mutated Grimm around and androids guarding it. Not just the red ones but also some white ones that had a grenade launcher/mini-gun they used to attack from a distance, or blast themselves away if I got too close." Both types of robots were eerily like huntsmen in design, role, and how they fought. Ruby didn't think they'd stand up alone to hunter or huntress, but Merlot was fond of sending plenty of them at his targets, if his actions against her were any indication.

"The pipeline led to his secret laboratory, where everything was very… clean. And empty, all sleek metal hallways and rooms. No people were there, just Grimm and androids. Also, there was this really weird 'welcome to' speech video, like it was an add or something." Ruby really didn't get that, was it just a sarcastic joke message, or did he really believe it? Was he so deluded he thought that anyone would actually want to visit his mad science lab some day? That he actually would make the world better with his research and it would make up for all the destruction and pain he caused along the way? Ruby hoped it was the former, the latter was just kind of depressing.

"Some of the Grimm where in these tubes for experimentation? I guess, I didn't really know, I just destroyed them. Ozpin helped guide me through the facility, getting me to the terminal where I used my scroll to download some stuff, including the location of the island so he could send a bulkhead to pick me up." Pyrrha looks at Ozpin suspiciously, as if unsure he could be behind anything good, which seems harsh. She knows that Pyrrha's trying to be less upset with him and not blame him for everything wrong that's gone on, but it seems like some days she slips a bit. Ruby doesn't get why everyone was upset with him for sending her on this mission. He had been guiding her and even distracting Doctor Merlot to make sure that she could get access through the facility and get the coordinates from the terminal. Sure, things got a little dangerous at times, but she was fine and she stopped a mad scientist. Isn't that what mattered?

"Where was it?" Ren inquires, breaking the silence he's held to this point.

"The island was a small uninhabited place just off the coast of Vale. I've had my people keep a close eye out for anything like the substance found there but it hasn't been found anywhere else on Remnant to my knowledge." Ozpin says to alleviate any concerns of mutant Grimm being nearby Mistral or the like.

"I still hadn't caught Doctor Merlot yet, so I went further into the facility breaking everything related to his operations that I could." Looking back on it, there were a lot of crates and cannisters and other stuff destroyed before she ended up on the island, and that not including the destruction related to her presence with the bombs and buildings collapsing. Looking further back Ruby remembered her initiation and the damage caused to the forest and the ruins she caused there, and she realized that if she had anyone other than Yang for a sister, people might start to suspect her as causing a fair amount of environment/collateral damage.

"In the deeper parts of the lab it wasn't all metal, the ground poked through in some places. Oh, and he had also started trapping the floor or ground with metal spikes that would poke out of grates randomly." Those had been annoying but only in how they forced her to maneuver around them at times. They were all pretty obvious so she didn't get caught by them even once. Before I reached him there was one final chamber where he kept his strongest Grimm." Ruby casts her mind back to that final battle against the Deathstalker and started talking again. "I'd fought my way deep into the complex…

_Ruby huffed a little, tired from the waves of Grimm and androids that had been hounding her in this room and throughout the facility as a whole. Particularly those last two mutated Beowolves. One could be dealt with with only a bit of trouble, but the two of them worked together and forced her to run around a lot, using her range to chip away at them, before going in for an opening. There were two large metal hanger doors and few smaller metal doors scattered around the sides (all of them shut tight for the moment) around the large opening in the ground where she fought his latest (and toughest) batch of evil minions. It was easily a hundred feet in a slightly uneven radius, with the platform she had leapt off of a few dozen meters above her. There was a door that closed off that pathway back as well, which only left further into this twisted place, starting with the hanger door labeled 'Command' (the other one looked like it was 'Hanger'. The metal was in nowhere near as good condition in the lower levels as it had been above, as if much of it was scrap that had to be cobbled together and placed in the ground)._

_Ruby took a single step to head further into the lab when she felt a rumbling at her feet. A huntress knew to be prepared from attacks above or below given the various ways the creatures of Grimm could move about, but this shook her. Not in surprise, but the ground was literally shaking her around. Ruby dived away, calling upon her semblance to avoid the massive Deathstalker that burst out from the ground. It was at least half again as large as the ancient one that attacked team Juniper in initiation, if not almost twice as large. Ruby herself was only as tall as about one of it's legs and dwarfed by the creature's large pincers, which had green markings instead of red ones. In fact, there were none of the usual red markings on any part of it's body. They and the stinger were a luminescent green, indicating that this creature was another of Merlot's experiments._

_"A mutated Deathstalker?!" The creature in question whipped around to face, clicking it's claws aggressively as it skittered towards her. It slashed at her rapidly with it's claws, but even with a surprising speed, it's size telegraphed the attack enough for Ruby to easily dodge it. _

_Ruby dashed to the side and sliced into it's flank for barely any effect. Ruby pulled her scythe out and jumped back, avoiding it's legs by a hair's breadth as it spun around. Looking up, she realized that the danger wasn't over with as it's stinger launched glowing green (likely poisionous) spikes in the air that were falling all around her. Ruby shot the Deathstalker and used the recoil to push herself out of the way of one of the spikes. The Grimm started burrowing in response, this time only moving a few feet under the surface, kicking up huge chunks of earth and dirt towards her. Ruby side stepped out of the way, keeping herself aloft with a few shots. The creature seemed confused when it burst out, having lost track of her. The red reaper used the opening to launch into a spinning strike at it, piercing her scythe through it's armor… but only just. She wrenched it free and started backing up, shooting at it more. The shots continued to plink off it's armor to no effect, or when she aimed for the eyes or unarmored parts, barely any effect._

_The green glowing beast flung several more spikes at her in waves that she had to weave around before loading her sweetheart with some Electric Dust rounds. She moved into a mid range and began firing them at the creature. They were hurting it more, but it still marched forward, then it's tail rose and she dodged as it struck where she had been. Ruby unloaded the rest of her cartridge into it's stinger where it remained stuck in the ground, despite it's efforts to pull it out. She flew into a flurry of blows against the stuck appendage, slicing at it in an attempt to hack it off. She cut into it's flesh, but each strike could only go so far, it's skin too tough for even Crescent Rose to penetrate it deeply._

_ She was knocked backward a bit as the tail ripped out of the ground, the hit eating to her aura slightly, but not stunning her enough to let her get hit by the claws it tried to slam her with. Some Creeps joined the fight and she went around killing them, while keeping her distance from the larger Grimm. She still had to avoid the poison spikes it flung every so often, but she was able to doo so and finish them off in short order before turning around to fire at the Deathstalker again. She saw a blue object roll by her feet and she aborted her, jumping away from the grenade, only to roll back again as two glaive strikes swept out at her. Regaining her footing she saw a Red and White android converging on her. She struck at the red one three times, knocking it in the air with an upward sweep and jumping between the two robots, spinning her scythe around in a circle, cleaving through the chest of the red one and damaging the force field of the other. The white one tried backing away, using a grenade shot to boost it's leap away from the scarlet huntress, but the mutated Grimm was burrowing towards her and the earth clipped it and sent it spiraling out of the air and onto the ground. Ruby ducked under a claw slash and fired a shot between the Deathstalker's legs at the robot, blowing off it's mechanical head. _

_Ruby danced around the creature, cutting into it's sides and claws with her scythe wherever she could, until a few bullets ripped into her Aura. "Seriously?! There's more of them?" She asked rhetorically as she turned to face the white android that had shot her from across the room, before turning into a cloud of rose petals and bursting away to avoid the claws of the Deathstalker behind her. She tore the robot to shreds quickly before chipping away at the beast with her shots again._

_The floor had a few grates even amidst the earth and Doctor Merlot encouraged his creature while activating them. Ruby tuned him out, she had to focus on the fight at hand. More robots would be sent in periodically, and while she had gotten better at reading their patterns and styles, she was getting tired too. Dodging a glaive strike left her clipped by one of the poison spikes and occasionally a few bullets from the white ones would rip into her aura while she avoided the clawed smashes aimed her way. She'd parry or dodge, zip across the battlefield with her Semblance like waving ribbon of violence, Grimm and machine alike cut apart. _

_Ruby flew through her forms, flowing from one attack to the next, but she couldn't stem the tide for long, not while dealing with the mutated Deathstalker, the implacable beast lumbering forward inexorably. She pushed herself a bit further, burned her reserves a little more to clear out the androids which had grown in number to three of them around the battlefield. Merlot released them from the smaller metal doors, but he never opened one whenever she was anywhere near them, not wanting to give her the chance to escape his 'ultimate creation'. Ruby parried the glaive wielding robot and struck it's force field three times in quick sucession before being pushed back. The Deathstalker moved forward, unleashing a rain of spikes towards her, some off which hit the robots. That attack depleted the red one's force field, allowing Ruby to side-step a textbook perfect strike and counter, driving her scythe through it's torso. Not stopping, the crimson huntress ran forward, dragging the now disabled robot behind her before swinging him in front of her like a shield as the two white androids tried to explode her and retreat. _

_Ruby blasted the one to her left, sending the mangled red android frame at it before charging the right one mid air, her scythe cutting it horizontally and then vertically, a shot changing her momentum midair and sending the backside of her scythe straight down at it. The back hook blade didn't pierce it's armor, but her weapon did hit it with enough blunt force to crash the robot against the ground and break it. _

_The moment she landed Ruby was on the move, swiveling around to face the remaining robot as she changed her weapon to sniper mode. The robot sent a few more grenades at her as she shot it's force field. The two of them strafed each other on roughly parallel tracks as Ruby kept the encroaching behemoth in her peripheral vision. Ruby felt the gun fire it's last bullet and she pulled off the spent cartridge before slapping in her Ice Dust enhanced one. The next few shots made quick work of it's barrier and then hit the robot directly, freezing it solid before it shattered. Being frozen without Aura was a quick fight ender. _

_Ruby pivoted and fired another round into the door across the room that was beginning to open, ice bursting out from where it hit and freezing it in place. The not-so-good Doctor was getting predictable in how he released his robots. Hopefully that would buy her a minute before he tried to send any more after her, which would let her focus on the giant Grimm headed her way._

_Numerous cuts weathered the Deathstalker's armor and skin now, making it look more like the ancient Grimm she had seen pictures of before. Almost no Grimm was that size without numerous scars from hunters past marring it. The thought came to her in a flash and she walked forward, standing above a grate as she sliced at it. The beast retaliated and she twisted under a claw, flicking the underside with Crescent Rose's tailspike before a quick shot and hook combination spun her out from underneath and flipped her over the claw just as she heard a 'click' below her. The motion carried her past where the Grimm aimed to hit her, the spikes from underneath rising up to meet it's other claw and jab into it. The Grimm recoiled and she darted ahead, her scythe flashing forward to take off one of it's back legs that she'd damaged before. Her core is aching from the force she needed to put into that twist to sever the limb, even with shot recoil assisting the blow. She felt it was worth it though as the creature collapsed partially, thrown off balance. _

_She didn't have long to revel in her victory, trying to dodge away from the creature as it half stood, half rolled towards her and was hit by an Alpha Creep that threw itself at her, knocking her into another one that clawed her into a third. These Grimm were smart enough to set up a trap and surround her. Before the third could strike her she called on her Semblance and spun, the speed boost from her petal transformation sending her scythe around in circle several times in a second, scattering them like her petals (but their thick armor prevented it from doing a great deal of damage). _

_Ruby switched her weapon to sniper mode, seeking further space, and then the Deathstalker started burrowing towards her. The earth it kicked up smashed into the Alpha behind her and clipped her as she tried to dodge. It hit like a truck, but Ruby didn't have time to be reeling, the creature had turned around and she saw another line of earth heading towards her. "Again? Well, you'll be sorry this time" Ruby taunted as she twirled to the side and readied a cleaving attack against it when it burst out of the ground… only to barely dodge out of the way as it turned underground and charged in her direction without surfacing._

_She exhaled sharply as she saw it turn around and head towards her new position again, obviously having some way to track where she was even while it was completely submerged in the earth. Ruby ran out of the way, just barely dodging it, but saving her from having to call on her Aura or Semblance. The creature grew up here, probably specifically modified by Merlot, it's defences were weak because the scientist never wanted to risk destroying his prized specimen (at least it sounds like that from what Ruby's half-heard from his commentary during the fight), but he did train it how to fight, it knows how to attack well. She can't afford to underestimate that again. She dashes around to place some of the spiked grates between her and the Grimm, hoping that will force it to surface again._

_The creature finally emerges a few meters away, just ahead of the grates inbetween them. The crimson huntress switches back to rifle mode, baiting it even as she heard a door open far behind her. Another robot would be coming in, so she avoided the claws as it waded in, waiting until… there! She dodged the tail as it slammed into where she had been. It wasn't lodged in as far as it was last time, but that was fine. Ruby fired off the last of her Ice Dust rounds into the tail, freezing it in place. Charging forward Ruby ran around and up the stinger, slicing into it repeatedly with Crescent Rose back in scythe form. She didn't have the time to hack through it fully, to repeatedly slice into a single spot as she had to dodge it's claws, but she was able to strike it over a dozen times before a red android leapt at her. She jumped off the tail, now covered halfway up in cuts all around it, and moved away from the Red Android that was striking towards her with it's glaive, watching it descend into the whirlwind of red petals she left behind her. _

_The Deathstalker knocked the robot away with it's tail that it finally managed to wrench out of the ground and ice, weakening the forcefield, but not causing much damage than that. The Grimm charged her and tried to crush her again, which she dodged until realizing it was a feint! The mutated Grimm put barely any effort into slamming the ground and had it's claws bounce off of the ground and slice into her, the force sending her tumbling backwards. She sees her aura flash as the claw hits her and her legs flare in pain as she forces herself to regain her footing. Distantly she hears Dr. Merlot taunt her "He's looking hungry, no doubt he'll savour your taste as I savour my victory." The words don't mean much to her at the moment though, washing over her like white noise as the fight demands her attention. Four more creeps have burrowed out from the ground, all of them glowing green and another android (this one white) has entered the fray._

_Ruby sees the Deathstalker about to burrow towards her and she moves to the side, directing it's path away from the Creeps. She weaves in and out between it's paths as she runs, luring the red android towards her and feinting towards the white one, her scythe slash causing it to leap away, landing in the center, right where she wants it. The scarlet warrior moves between the Grimm, gliding between the Creeps, not a single claw landing on them as she pulls them in. She has to resist the ingrained response of cutting open their pitiful defences with her scythe as she gets them in position. _

_The red android is behind her, ready to take advantage of her focus on the Creeps, just like the white one a few meters to the side pointing it's minigun at her, but they're knocked off their courses as the Deathstalker bursts of the ground, ready to attack her. It's bulk slams against her aura as well, but she's ready for it, vaulting over the Creeps as the stinger descends down into them. Ruby calls on her Semblance to boost her speed and get out of the way of the exploding Grimm, shifting her scythe grip as she flees to reflect away from her Silver Eyes and towards the creatures behind her, taking in their destruction._

_The destruction of the robots and the Creeps at least, the Deathstalker has cracks over all over it's armor now and is weeping green ichor from a few of it's cuts and stinger, but somehow the tail is still holding up, even with all the damage she's inflicted on it. Turning around she watches it throw poison spikes all around, no waves or lines, just a random scattering of death. Ruby moves around as best she can, but there's no pattern to read, and as she dodges a set of grate spikes, two Grimm spikes smack into her aura. There's no time to check on her aura, but she's sure it must be in the red by this point. No time to check though, she runs forward attacking him, skirmishing in and out, just far enough that it's claws miss her but not enough to prompt it's ranged attacks or further burrowing. Her blows inflict little damage, whether with blade or gun, but she continues to chip away at it, buzzing at it like a wasp it can't quite hit._

_The androids come in steadily as she attacks the Grimm over the next few minutes and she makes some quick circles to avoid them and still strike at her gargantuan foe (no more Creeps have shown up; it looks like the bad Doctor can't control or direct them towards her nearly as well as he can his robots). The androids back off for a moment just before the creature launches into a spin that catches her by the cloak and throws her forward, right into a poison spike she can't avoid. It's spin stops as abruptly as it started and the creature lunges forward, left and right, it's claws strike out and cause the real damage. Her aura flashes red before disappearing and she's thrown away, her back smashing against the rocky wall, before she collapses down on one knee._

_Her vision is blurry for a moment and she thinks she's seeing triple for a moment, before realizing that realizing that there really are three robots and all three of the red androids are marching towards her right now. She looks down at her face, reflected from the parts of her scythe that aren't covered in mutant Grimm gunk. Her face is blank, none of the pain wracking her body showing on it, likely because she barely even feels it herself, just noting it as a vague thought. Only her eyes show anything, the silver light reflecting determination even she didn't know she had._

_Her gaze rises to meet the android at the front of the trio marching towards her, now a few feet away, glaive raised to stab downward at her. She may fall – _

_her grip tightens on Crescent Rose, pulling her scythe up and pushing away it's weapon's shaft away with her own, the force pushing her out of the such that the glaive barely slices through her shirt, but leaves her skin unblemished as she rises up in a fight stance _

_– but not this place, not this day. The three robots descend upon her and she parries past all their attacks. Even with their advanced programming, her scythe moves like a blur in her hands, spinning around and deflecting every strike perfectly in a manner that she isn't sure that she'd ever be able to replicate again. Her moment of insight even seems to have thrown off the robots as they pause their attack for a second. The red reaper seizes that moment, shredding through the first one in front of her in a quick series of slashes, ripping it apart then flying through the low and high strike of the two remaining androids, calling on a scrap of aura she didn't consciously know she had left to slip between them with her Semblance. She sprints forward to the Deathstalker, her movement carrying her well past the spikes it had sent her way, jumping over the left claw and she almost seems to hang in the air for a moment before she falls into a vertical spin, her scythe ripping off it's front left leg._

_Her breath is coming in steadily even as her lungs feel like they're on fire. She fired several rounds into one android attacking her, keeping it in between her and the other one while she danced around the attacks the mutant Deathstalker sent her way, breaking it's forcefield and then getting the Grimm to burrow through it. She tried to recover as much as she could as she attacked her foes, trying to gain a bit of Aura back while keeping them at bay. The Deathstalker was getting more desperate as her wounds piled up, thrashing in pain at one point as she stabbed down a crack in it's shell, but even as it got weaker, she couldn't keep down the robots that kept pouring in. _

_Three androids were attacking her, two of them white ones, when Ruby nearly got impaled by it's stinger. She hopped backwards, landing besides two grenades before bursting forward with her Semblance, spinning into a vortex that pulled the two grenades into her wake. The grenades exploded by it's tail, leaving the stinger dangling loosely from it. Leaping from behind it, she hooked the tail with her scythe and pulled the trigger, the shot recoil boosting her momentum to rip off the glowing green stinger. It flew through the air, embedding itself in the wall past her as she landed. Ruby landed on her feet and spun to face the creature- she fell down suddenly. She wondered what happened, what attack she had missed, when she felt her muscles spasm. It wasn't the androids moving in to finish her off, or the Grimm, it was her own body that betrayed her, pushed too far, even though she knows what she has to do. _

_Before the robots can kill her, the Deathstalker saves her, angered and rampaging through them to get to her, smashing them to red and white pieces. It's unintended save doesn't stop it from still slamming into her, pushing her into a mound of rock and dirt shifted into a pile on the floor by the Deathstalker's constant burrowing. Blood is streaming down her head making it hard to see from one eye. That's it! She's not sure how much she can move her legs at the moment, but she has enough control to take her Rose and turn it to a sniper rifle. Aiming at the beast lumbering towards her, she shoots it in the eyes, any ones that hadn't already been ripped out. The Deathstalker charges towards her, but she's done her work well enough, the creature's blinded to her as she shifts her weapon one last time and uses a shot to send her mostly prone self under the rampaging Grimm as it approaches. Raising her scythe as she does so, she carves a deep jagged line through the creature's underbelly. Out from the other end she rose up, planting her scythe's tail spike in the ground to help wrench herself up. She half-turned and cast her steely gaze over to the Deathstalker. The beast stumbles a few feet forward before collapsing and starting to disintegrate. _

_"No! NOOOOOOO! My one of a kind specimen! This is inconceivable!" Doctor merlot wailed in anguish as his monster faded away. _

_'Alright Ruby, time to think of something really cool to say after beating the big bad monster'. She drew in a ragged and raspy breath before saying "Take that you big bully." 'Nailed it'._

_Ozpin's voice chimed up from her Scroll "It's all over Merlot. You've got nothing left."_

_Ruby could practically hear Merlot's sneer as he replied to the headmaster "There is something I can do…"_

Ruby blinks her eyes as she takes in the looks of shock from everyone else (and discomfort? from Ozpin. He's hard to read) after she's done narrating everything that happened in that last part of the lab. "Uh yeah, so after all that Ozpin called down a bulkhead to the hanger and I was able to get away before Merlot self-destructed the base."

Weiss is the first to recover her voice "He blew up the base with himself inside it?"

"If only. While I've seen no sign of him since we weren't able to recover any remains of him from the wreckage of his facility. Admittedly, there wasn't much left of the base whatsoever so most of my knowledge on it comes from Ruby's tale (which has granted me a clearer picture on the matter). Still, while Merlot might be reckless with the safety of others, he has a habit of preparing paths for him to get to safety." The glower on his face makes Ruby think that Dr. Merlot has done something like that before the island or even Mountain Glen, which makes her wonder about his relationship with Merlot, but she gets that tonight's probably not the right time to ask. "It's likely that he's escaped off the island somehow before we could apprehend him." Ozpin answers Weiss' question but he doesn't seem to get many friendly looks back.

Pyrrha's fists are clenched tight even as she regulates her breathing, which Ruby knows means she's trying to do to calm herself down. It's Qrow who speaks up though "How could you send her on that kind of a mission? She's a million years too youn-"

"Uncle Qrow!" At his niece's shout he stops and turns to face Ruby. "I'm not too young, I'm a huntress too now and I chose to do this. Besides, I succeeded so that means it was totally fine to send me on that mission." Ruby knows that some (ok, most) of that is highly questionable. She really isn't sure whether or not she gets counted as a full Huntress or not with the fall of Beacon and how she was a student before but now she's going on world saving missions and all. It also might be an overstatement of her abilities to say she was 'totally fine' there – there were more than a few points where she might not have made it through there, but…

"Qrow, I understand your concerns, but please do not think me so foolish that I assigned that mission with full knowledge of how dangerous it was. Don't disparage Miss Rose's abilities either." Ozpin turns to the group as a whole "I value all of you, as my cherished students, of course, but there will also come times when I'll have to value you as soldiers. You are all incredibly gifted hunters and I may need to put you in harms way for the good of humanity. I hope you all can understand that when you accept this mission."

Ruby nods her head eagerly. Aww yiss, this is awesome! Ozpin's acknowledging them as fully-fledged huntresses and she's gonna be a hero, just like her mom. She'll beat Salem and save the world, with Penny by her side. She can't help but grin broadly at Ozpin's support of her, which he returns with a small upturn of his lips towards her before adopting a more neutral expression. The others seem… less enthused, but Qrow is slowly nodding and seems to be accepting Ozpin's words.

"Now that we have that cleared out of the way, are there any other questions you have before we move on to Pyrrha's news?" There are plenty of meaningful glances traded around but no one in the group has anything else to say, when an unfortunate idea strikes Ruby's mind.

"Professor Ozpin…" Ruby tentatively begins. "Is Merlot working with Salem?" The room stills at her question, the other students hadn't considered it and are looking worried (Qrow keeps drinking from his flask but he raises an eyebrow at Ozpin in askance of him).

"Fortunately, no. Doctor Merlot is aware of Salem's existence, and I assume she of him (at least in the days before Mountain Glenn fell). Both of them use the Grimm, but I believe they would find each other's view points to be… antithecal. There were certainly no signs of her involvement at mountain Glen or on Merlot's island, and I'd imagine if he was working with her his experiments would have been used in the Battle of Beacon."

Qrow chips in to ease Ruby's mind "Big science guy like him? After you broke all his toys he's probably off trying to build them back again, start somewhere fresh. We won't have ta worry about him for some time." Ruby hopes that's the case. She destroyed a lot of his stuff there, but he brushed off most everything he had lost as if it wasn't a problem, right until the very end.

"All that being said… with everything you've described, I'm thinking we might make dealing with the mad doctor a priority after reclaiming the Relic."

Weiss speaks up "If he's going to be building up to be such a threat with his science, shouldn't we focus on Merlot? So long as we know where the Spring Maiden is…"

"An excellent question Miss Schnee, but there are a couple of factors that favour dealing with the Relic first. Salem's forces are on the move, and we have no idea when they will strike here, but I suspect it will be soon and we must be in place to stop them and protect Haven. Raven's bandit tribe is constantly on the move, finding them after they've changed locations again could be difficult. We also currently have no idea where Doctor Merlot is stationed… a problem that we can rectify with the Relic of Knowledge once we take it out of Haven."

"You're gonna use the Relic, Oz?" Qrow asks with a(n ironically) sober expression on his face as he puts away his empty flask.

"Yes, Doctor Merlot's actions are too dangerous to ignore, and while I do not believe he would work with Salem, the possibility does remain if we push either one of them too far. Him and his twisted experiments need to be stopped."

Pyrrha crosses her arms and asks "How does the Relic tell you where Merlot is, exactly?"

"The Relic of Knowledge can answer any three questions (within certain limitations, like lacking a knowledge of the future) every century. I've already used two of them, but I can use the remaining one to root out Doctor Merlot. I… admit as much as I fought a cyber battle against Merlot while Ruby was on her mission, my Scroll feed did not give me a proper feel for the danger of his creations. Ruby's testimony now has helped convince me that using it is necessary to stop him." Everyone takes in his words for a moment, most of them nodding along with his conclusion and looking at Ruby.

"Alright then, Pyrrha, why don't you tell us your news?" Ruby says, both eager for the spotlight to be off of her for her actions and to hear what Pyrrha had done that kept her out so late during the day.

"Right, I'm sorry. This was, surprising, but I suppose my news might be more relevant to what's happening now, with our current mission."

"Oh?" Qrow inquired. "Didja have a couple hunters stuffed away that I didn't know about." Well, that's a little rude, but Ruby reflects that's not really unexpected for her Uncle, especially with how grumpy he'd been getting with his own failures there.

"Not hunters, I figured my contacts wouldn't be anywhere near as good as yours there. No, I asked some of my old tournament associates and in the end I convinced six of them to join us." Ruby's jaw drops open at that statement. Six more super cool fighters with super cool weapons? What were Pyrrha's old tournament friends like? When would they meet them?

There were some exclamations from the group "Woohoo! We're ready to rock now!" Nora. "Excellent work Pyrrha" Ren. "What?" Qrow, dumbfounded at how much better she had done than him. "How?" Yang. "Who?" Weiss asks, and over that noise, her question is the only one she answers.

"Boren Tenka, Avery Wilton, Lavender Lilywhite, Umber Greel, Mary Malkin, and Denim Euchre." Ruby doesn't really know those names. She had heard of the tournament scene in Mistral and vaguely knew of Pyrrha before meeting her, but it took her a moment to connect her statuesque new partner to the celebrity fighter after she met her in person in Beacon; these names don't really mean much to her. Once she gets a chance to meet their weapons, she might remember them better. Her partner doesn't seem to recognize all of the names, but she recognizes some of them and seems impressed at Pyrrha's answer to her question.

Ozpin speaks up "Miss Nikos, I'm pleased at the initiative you've taken but I must ask: How much do they know about the nature of our mission?"

"Well, Headmaster" Ruby's both impressed and disappointed by the inflection of that word as Pyrrha uses it, managing to remain in a civil tone that no one could fault her for, and yet also implying immense disproval (seriously, Weiss could take a lesson from her other Partner here). "I made sure to keep quiet about the exact 'retrieval' nature of our mission which I'm sure you and/or Qrow can inform them about, but I did feel it prudent to tell them we would be taking on the Branwen Bandit tribe. That name alone drove more than twice that number of people that would be willing to help away from us."

Pyrrha pauses for a moment, letting it sink in with the others. Yang looks so furious that Ruby thinks her big sister might spontaneously combust (not the first time it's happened though usually she's more in control). "What are you getting at?" She growls at Pyrrha.

"The last man to agree to join us, Denim, had an encounter with your mother. One where she cut his arm off and then proceeded to ruin his life." Pyrrha's prepared for it so she doesn't glance at Yang's arm, but aside from her, Ozpin seems to be the only one in the room that has the self control to not flick a glance there. Ruby's sister rubs her new metal arm and looks… distraught. Shook. Small, in a way Ruby's almost never seen her big sister.

"What?"

"Your mother cut his arm off then sent him back to Mistral in shame and defeat after he tried to stand up against her tribe and protect a town, but that wasn't enough. His life experienced a number of unfortunate events afterwards that drove everyone away from him, all while haunted by omens until a few months ago. Omens like a 'raven' that had been hanging around him." The magic Ozpin gave her Uncle and Raven, Pyrrha's suggesting that Raven used it torture this man. But why? Why do such a thing, even if she was a nasty, horrible bandit? Why go to that effort? While Ruby's pondering that, Pyrrha continues. "She hurt him until she got bored with ruining him after he hit rock bottom, and when the council sent a freshly graduated hunter team after her, the rumors are she killed all but one of them too."

The other ex-students are shocked by this, Yang's a mixture of angry and depressed, with Weiss laying a hand on her knee to try to lend support. Even Qrow likes horrified by this, spitting in disgust and muttering something in old Mistrali that sounds like it's probably a curse. Ozpin is the only one that doesn't look shocked, but that's only because he looks to old for it. Oscar's a boy, but his lips are set in a thin line, his jaw clenched and his eyes are shimmering with an anger and regret that no one his age should feel.

"Sister- no, Raven" Qrow mutters. "After everything we went through as hunters together. It's one thing, to be scared of Salem, quitting was bad enough, but this? How could she do this? What would she get out of-?" Ruby remembers what he told them of the truth regarding his Semblance and how much he tried to keep it hidden and disliked his own powers and the harm he could bring to those closest to him. To see his sister mimicking it just to hurt Denim, it must have struck him deeply.

His question is cut off and probably rhetorical, but Ruby decides to answer it anyway as an idea comes to her. "She did it because she wants people to fear her." Everyone turns to look at her again. "I mean, at least, that's what I think, she's worried about getting attacked, so instead of killing him, she just…"

Pyrrha finishes off her thought "Cripples him and ruins him publicly. That was part of the reason why Denim decided to join us when I told him we were going to fight her. So that no matter what happens his presence won't be used to send a message of fear in the hearts of others. I don't think he knows to what extent she orchestrated everything, but he got the general idea. It looks like it worked though, with every other hunter unavailable and so few other warriors willing to help."

"No, it did not work as planned" Ozpin stands up as he speaks and plants his cane on the floor. "I have many regrets, many things that I will never be able to fix. But Raven's actions, the oppression and fear she's been able to enact with my magic? That is something we will be fixing right now." His hazel eyes are blazing with determination and righteous vengeance, he looks… different than Ruby's ever seem him in either incarnation. Like a general, or a king.

"Now?!"

"As soon as possible at least. Miss Nikos, if you could, please inform your gladiators that we'll require their presence immediately."

"I can call them, but it's pretty late and some of them have demanding training regimens. The best I'll be able to get them in would be tomorrow, probably by noon for the trip upwards some of them will be taking. I- We should talk about all of them after all this, I can give you a run down of what they are like"

"Very well then, have them meet us at Haven." Ozpin seems to have calmed down a bit now, though he still looks slightly on edge. "Everyone should rest up for tonight, tomorrow, we march into battle." His words don't seem to calm everyone down though, flurries of emotions passing by everyone's faces as they start talking amongst each other (except for Yang, who's being talked at by Weiss but just seems to be brooding herself, and Qrow whose wandered off to the kitchen, likely looking to refill his flask). Ozpin's shoulders slump and his grip on the staff shifts for a moment, which Ruby thinks is a sign that he's giving back Oscar control for a moment.

This 'catch-up' session for Yang and Weiss really spiralled out of control, and as the youngest Huntress heads after her uncle, even though this all makes sense and she's glad about the assistance they're getting, she can't help but feel a grim foreboding about the future and what it holds.

A/N: I wasn't sure about putting this chapter in at first, but eventually I decided it was necessary. The game, RWBY: Grimm Eclipse is canon to the show, and I plan to use elements of it later and this was the best point to deliver the information to all of the main characters. Also, while it is canon, it allows you to use any of the characters from teams RWBY and JNPR in any combination, so I needed to clarify how exactly it went down in my version. Which was very difficult, singleplayer against the Mutant Deathstalker is quite tough. Ruby's victory was hard fought and I hope I struck enough of a balance between showing her prodigious skill and the level of danger and power the Grimm and Merlot's androids had. Anyways, I had a lot of fun writing this fight and describing the events of the game. I hope that it didn't interrupt the flow of Pyrrha giving the news of her day too much.


	20. Chapter 20 - A much needed talk

Chapter 20 – A much needed talk

Pyrrha got up as the others were talking and went out through the front doors, taking in a breath of fresh air. It got pretty chilly up in Mistral at night time, but Pyrrha welcomed it right now. Raven. Cinder. Salem far away, and now Merlot too. How many enemies did they have? Pyrrha knew her destiny would be to die on the field of battle one day, the hordes of Grimm were endless, but she had hoped that her end would make a difference, beyond just which monster would be stopped and which ones would be free to run rampant. She had hoped that her end would serve to inspire others to carry the torch against the darkness, not to be snuffed out and covered up by some immortal machinations to preserve the world.

Pyrrha hung her head in shame at her negativity, she knows that wallowing isn't right, that she's made a great stride today and hopefully tomorrow they'll claim their victory. The Grimm were always going to be an infinite wave of darkness, however much she impossibly hoped that she would be the one to turn the tide someday, all she did was learn the names of some of the darkness that waited in Remnant. It's just-

She turns at the sound of the door swinging open to look at Oscar, having nervously followed her out. "Um, uh, hi Pyrrha" he nervously says, waving at her. She gazes back down at him and smiles reassuringly.

"Hello Oscar, how are you?"

"I'm… worried."

Her face drops and she places a hand on his shoulder. "Oscar, I am so sorry. You've been under such an immense burden and we've- I've done nothing to help you."

He looks up at her hopefully. "Then tell me how you do it."

Pyrrha looks at him, confused by his question "How… I do it? I don't- I can empathize, but I don't have an immortal wizard in my head, slowly taking over my personality."

"What? No, I wasn't talking about that. I- I'm glad that Ozpin can help guide me (and uh, he said it's a slow melding, not a takeover or anything), but I don't know how you deal with everything. The danger we're going to be facing, the threats lurking. You've been attacked and had your school destroyed, but you're unfazed."

A short laugh escapes her before she can stop it. Seeing him looking hurt she quickly responds. "Sorry, I was laughing because, well, I haven't dealt with it well. Honestly, I might be the worst person to ask on how to deal with the stress we face (except maybe Qrow. Seriously Oscar, don't start drinking like him)."

"But, you're the Invincible Girl! And even from everything I've seen of you in person, you've been amazing. I've seen you spar and train the others, you just brought in enough fighters to almost double our numbers, and you always seem so cool and confident and in control."

"Thank you, the words are kind. Some part of how collected I appear is due to my training, I was instructed on how to make myself appear unflappable to the press, if ever questioned. And I suppose I do some things to help, but, well let's just say that you would not be thinking the same things had you met me a few weeks ago, before we arrived at Mistral. I lost someone, my partner. His name was Jaune Arc and he was… very close to me." It still hurts a little bit to think of him. Pyrrha isn't sure that that pain will ever go away (or that she'd ever want it to), but it doesn't hurt the same way it used to. She won't let the past hold her back any longer.

"In a lot of ways, he's like you, Oscar. He had no formalized training before he came to Beacon, was raised in rural village, with no knowledge of Aura or much of the world, but he had a lot of potential. The most important thing about him was his big heart. He cared so much for others and wanted to be a hero, to fight back the Grimm and save people. His Semblance even developed with the ability to use his soul to heal and lend strength to others. I was watching him grow into that role as a hero, before he was killed, just because he tried to help us make a difference fighting against evil." She chokes up a bit, taking a moment before she continues. The memories are still a bit much for her when talking directly about his death.

"I took his death quite poorly, lashing out at others, only focused on myself and the pain I was feeling. It was Ruby that snapped me out of it, she saved me, helped remind of why we're doing this. She helped me realize that this is what Jaune would be doing right now if he had the chance, and what he'd want me to be doing. So I do this for him. I do this for Penny Polendina, a girl I didn't know well, but who wanted to save the world. I do this for everyone in the world who can't defend themselves, I do this so that when I fall, my deeds will make a legend. One that can inspire people like the tales of Mistralian warriors of old did for me when I was young too.

"You asked how I can do all that? The fighting has always come easy to me, and given what I've seen of your drills, it looks like it will be the same for you." Him wielding Ozpin's cane came naturally, like a veteran soldier shaking the rust off their sword after a few years of disuse. It must be a side effect of Ozpin possessing the young farmboy. "How I deal with the burdens placed upon us is by reminding myself of all the reasons why I do this. Also: talking to my teammates whenever I feel overwhelmed, I do that too." And she should probably do that more, Pyrrha mentally adds, but decides not to mention to Oscar.

"I think… that you're wrong Pyrrha. I think that a lot of people could have given me a far worse answer than you did. Thank you." He's gazing up at her with admiration, something that's always made her uncomfortable before, but doesn't seem to this time. Maybe it's because before it would always be from fans she didn't know and feel unwarranted, but this feels nice. She's glad to help him out with something.

She's glad that she could help him out with his doubts, but she wishes she could do more. She can't even help him train like the others, Ozpin and his skills have that covered better than she could manage, but even in his prime, those skills have proven fallible. Danger's getting closer even faster than before and she doesn't want to see another bright young teammate die in front of her. He might be ok with Ozpin in his head, but Pyrrha's still worried about it. There's nothing she can do about it though… is this all she can do?

At her lengthy pause Oscar waves his hand in front of her face. "Pyrrha?"

She startles and looks at him "Sorry, I was just thinking. Oscar, we may all have been thrown into this, but at least us students got the chance to choose it. You didn't. Do you want to walk away from this fight. There's no shame in abstaining" Pyrrha says, echoing Ozpin's earlier words.

"Heh, well that doesn't really matter, does it? Ozpin's a part of me, so I have to be a part of this fight, don't I." He doesn't state it like a question but Pyrrha chooses to answer it anyways.

"What if he wasn't a part of you?"

"Um, doesn't that only happen when I die? I know I'd rather that didn't happen anytime soon" Oscar says, seeming slightly nervous at where this conversation has headed.

Pyrrha waves her arms in front of her "No, no, I wasn't thinking about that. I was thinking of using the Relic when we got it and asking how we could separate Ozpin from you while keeping you alive."

He gapes at her for a moment "What? But, that question, isn't it supposed to be used for finding Doctor Merlot? I don't think that's even possible, so that would just be a waste of the question."

She shakes her head. "I obviously can't say for certain, I'm not a Relic of Knowledge or anything, but I think it would be possible if we did have the Relic. I know for a fact that Atlas has developed soul transfer devices and has been researching such things. They might be able to do so in a way that didn't kill either of you, using the Relic to perfect the process. As for Merlot… yes, he is a threat, and that would be using up our question on him, but you're worth it. You should have the chance at a normal life if you want it."

She sees him hesitating and she says "Look, don't worry about whether or not we should use the question for that, or even if it's possible, that's not important. Just decide whether or not you'd want to be a part of this."

His face is screwed up in concentration and he's muttering something that sounds like "No, I don't care if it's possible, this is my choice." Ozpin must be trying to manipulate him and Pyrrha moves her hand an inch towards her weapon before realizing how utterly pointless that would be. They stand there for a few minutes, the only sound the wind rushing by them.

"… I can't manage to separate the fact that you'd be losing out on that question from the Relic just for me to not fight." He holds up a hand to forestall her further arguments. "In a way that is my answer. Knowing what I know, I don't want to do anything that would weaken your fight against Salem and the Grimm, so I guess I've made my decision to fight too."

Pyrrha smiles at him. Somehow, he doesn't seem so much like Jaune any more. The similarities are there on the surface, but how he talks, the fact that he actually got a chance to make an informed decision, it all helps him stand apart from her old partner in her mind. "That is very brave of you, I'm glad you made this choice."

"I'm glad too, you helped me resolve a lot of doubts."

"That's good, though I was wondering if I could talk to Ozpin for a moment before you two turned in. I know he's busy, but I have a question that only he can answer.

He pauses for a moment before nodding. "Sure, you can ask away. Ozpin seemed a little… worried about your question, so I guess you two can talk about that too. There's been a lot to take in today so I could use a break anyway."

Pyrrha gives Oscar a smile framed to let him know exactly how much she cares about his opinion on her giving his host other options. Continuing that thought "Wait, Oscar, how much can he see when you're in control?" Oscar had framed giving Ozpin control like resting, but Ozpin seemed to respond to the question Pyrrha gave to Oscar.

"Um, well, everything, as far as I can tell. Why?"

"Oh, I was just wondering if you could both perceive everything the other was doing while they were in control."

Oscar looks puzzled for a moment before shaking it off. "Huh, I can't actually do that with him. Everything will be fuzzy, or come in and out of focus, and that's only when I work on looking out. Maybe he can tell you more about it" and with that Oscar shifted to Ozpin. The changes in stance were subtly (and adopted far more fluidly than Oscar's jerky movements when he regained control), but they were starting to become noticeable to Pyrrha.

"Miss Nikos, I believe we have some questions for each other." His tone is amicable enough, but there's something missing to it. Some piece that makes it come off just a bit flater and colder, less like he's looking upon her as a student of his.

"Yes, we do. I'll start: Why can you see everything Oscar does but not the other way around?" Ozpin said it was a merging, but Ozpin's greater control sounds like 'taking over'.

"I understand your suspicion, but I'm afraid the cause is quite natural, or at least as 'natural' as anything regarding my curse can be. I've lived through my reincarnation process so many times that I simply have a better handle on it than those whose bodies I've ended up in."

"Oh, so it's something you learned to deal with." That makes sense and Pyrrha almost feels bad for suspecting it of being a sign of something nefarious. "Will Oscar learn to do the same?"

He grimaces a little "That is… unlikely. I could help show him how, but even with my guidance it's unlikely he'd get anywhere close to my level of control before we were fused or at least mostly one."

"Oh." Pyrrha can't help the disappointment that shows on her face at that news, as well as the reminder of what will inevitably happen to Oscar.

"Given the process is entirely mentally, you do just have to take my word for it, however if you're interested, you can learn about it from the perspective of a different me. In a past life I wrote a book called The Man with Two Souls. It contains an accounting of what it's like both for myself and for the person I've been reincarnated into."

"You wrote a book on… how you reincarnate?"

He chuckled "I may be immortal, but I'm not so different from anyone else that I wouldn't want to share my experiences with the world and hope that someone could be moved by them. Obviously I've had to obscure certain events, change a few details to prevent any of Salem's minions from discovering my secrets, but all told it is a fairly accurate representation."

"The name of the book sounds familiar. Where have I heard it before?"

"It is somewhat dated now, but I'm told it's still moderately successful. I believe Miss Beladona read it a few times when she was at Beacon, you might have heard it from her." And just like that he's back to being creepy again. How did he know that about Blake? Does he spy/pay that much attention to every student at Beacon?

"Wait." He stops at her words, looking confused. "Why did you choose me? To be your Maiden and take Amber's powers. Don't give me the speech you gave back at the tower. I heard Ruby's story of her fight on Merlot's island, she must have been just as good a candidate as I was, with even more potential. Even though… she'd have more desire than, more willingness to become your Fall maiden."

"I did say that if you chose not to take on the mantle of the Fall Maiden I would choose someone else. I did guide Ruby throughout that mission, but, well, hearing her describe it did help bring certain details to light. Throughout that mission I engaged Doctor Merlot in cyber warfare, as our struggles went back and forth, so too did my access to the feeds in and around the facility. I didn't get as clear a picture as I thought I did on her skill and efforts."

"Uh huh" Pyrrha says, crossing her arms, unconvinced. She isn't mad or even disbelieving (okay, scratch that, a little disbelieving considering everything he seems to know), but Ozpin has a habit of having more than one reason for his actions.

He lets out a sigh after half a minute of her obviously waiting for a further answer. "I also did it because I wasn't sure how infusing a soul into her would affect her Silver Eyes, and I hoped… You're aware that the Maidens fill the role of guardians of mankind, correct? Four of them, four seasons, four Kingdoms. Humanity has grown and spread such as it has in this modern age due in no small part to critical interventions on their part. They can take on the missions others can't, serve as shield to all the people of Remnant. Yet the darkness has been on the rise these past few years, the fruits of Salem's dark plans now come to bloom. And the number of Kingdoms, well it's grown, to five with Menagerie."

"I was around when legends of Silver Eyed warriors were first formed, when they were simply a fact that everyone knew. Ruby's skill is prodigious, even for one of them, though she still needed time to grow into it. If she managed to unlock her Silver Eyes, I thought she'd be able to serve on the same level as the Maidens. To destroy any Grimm and bring hope to the people. Much like you talked with her about. I still do think that, but I don't have the luxury of being able to train all of you to the level you should be at before you have to face Salem and her minions. If all of you are to achieve the levels you must, it will be through many trials by fire, not the teachings I had hoped to give you over four years at Beacon." He looks weary, and Pyrrha thinks that everything he's said is true and that he is sad about forcing them to say goodbye to their childhoods and conscripting them to fight terrors… but some part of her feels like it's hardly the first time he's said this to someone either. Through Yang's words, Pyrrha heard Raven say that she had been pushed ahead by Ozpin, forced to go beyond what other students would during their time at Beacon. Did he count that, or was it that bad back then too?

He half turns from her, staring up at the shattered moon peeking through the clouds. "I also knew Miss Rose hadn't reached her potential yet and I knew someone was after Amber's remaining power. I needed someone who was already strong, had already reached her potential. Someone who was good and noble, dedicated to saving Remnant and it's people. In truth, I did have many candidates at Beacon who could potentially fit that role, and my heart is gladdened by knowing that there are so many brave and gifted young women who have committed themselves to protecting this world and it's peoples. That being said, you were easily at the top of my list."

Pyrrha's a bit overwhelmed. She knew Ozpin could be inspiring, and had been even moreso during the early days of his career than the short time Pyrrha had gotten to know him, but this is heartening. Getting a glimpse past his stoic shell for a moment, she starts to get why Ozpin was so upset, why he ordered an immediate assault against Raven. He does care for his students greatly and hearing what Raven did, well it must have upset him tremendously to see a former student of his cause so much destruction. Like the destruction she caused at Beacon by not-

She's snapped out of her thoughts by Ozpin planting his cane on the ground. "Pyrrha, I was the one who decided to delay the transfer. I may have raised the possibility to you, but I wanted to make sure you had every chance to think about it and refuse or accept freely. I had Amber with my since before you attended Beacon, I could have gone ahead faster, but I foolishly thought that I had more time. Any fault you may lay on yourself for Beacon, or anyone lost that day, I relieve you of it. The fault was mine and I accept full responsibility." How did he know what she was thinking? Was it just so apparent that he could read her guilt off of her face?

She feels like a great weight's been lifted from her at his words. She can't bring herself to blame him any more after seeing this and his reassurance lets her stop blaming herself. She knows that he is hardly the only one that's been telling her to stop, but his are the tipping point, or perhaps she's just had enough time for her heart to mend. At least, not blame herself as much, she knows herself well enough to know that self doubt will flare up again from time to time, but she won't let herself be conquered by her sorrows anymore. She'll just live, and do the best she can. And if she is overwhelmend, well like she told Oscar, she has friends. Her thoughts turn to Ruby, Nora, and Ren. They can help her too, and when they need it, she'll be there for them.

"Ozpin. I… know I haven't really been fair to you before. I was looking for someone to blame and I placed a lot of it on you, when it wasn't. I think you're still a bit shady sometimes, but I want to sincerely thank you. For everything you've done and are still trying to do."

"You're welcome." There's a nice moment of silence between them, before it's interrupted by a large yawn from Ozpin. He chuckles lightly "Ah, yes, it's getting late and I should give Oscar the chance to rest his young body in preparation for tomorrow." Unsaid is that Pyrrha probably should be resting up too. She smiles and nods her head before the two of them walk back inside.

A/N: This chapter was way more complicated than it should have been. A lot of the dialogue and tone I had in the first versions just didn't fit. I am pretty glad with the end result, though, so that's something. Let me know what you think about it.


	21. Chapter 21 - Family Ties

Chapter 21 – Family Ties

Ruby entered the kitchen and saw her uncle leaning over the counter, grabbing out a bottle of some alcohol Ruby didn't know and was pouring it into his flask. He wasn't drinking it though, so that meant that he was just… filling up the flask he completely dank out.. so he could drink the new stuff later. Ok, Ruby wasn't on board with all the drinking her uncle did, but for him that was somewhat moderated.

"That was quite the story of what ya been through kiddo" Qrow says as he puts the bottle in the cupboard and stows his flask.

"It really wasn't that big a deal, and it happened ages ago. Well, it feels like ages since-" Ruby pauses and changes tracks. "Hey, how are you going to be with fighting your sister?"

He scoffs, but it's just a little too loud, a bit too exaggerated. It would look normal on someone else, but Ruby had trained with him for years, she knew his reactions well enough to tell that this was bothering him more than he let on. "Raven made it clear I was either with her or against her. Her values of 'family' are pretty twisted."

"You can say that again" Yang announced as she entered the kitchen. "She told me pretty much the same thing right before we left." Yang crosses the room and leans against the counter, facing Ruby and Qrow with her arms crossed.

"That's Raven for you. She was always good at pushing people away when she wasn't leaving them first." Qrow's words triggered a hurt look on Yang's face and Ruby knows that she must be thinking not only of her mother, but also of her partner, Blake. Ruby hasn't heard a thing about her teammate and where she's been, but she hopes that Blake is alright wherever she is.

"Hey, Uncle Qrow," Ruby tentatively begins. "What was it like with Raven, back before…"

"Before when? Before Team STRQ broke up? Before we enrolled in Beacon? Before our father put us through- ah it doesn't matter." Qrow grumbles a bit before taking a seat at the table, Ruby sits opposite him with her sister by her side.

"It does though. There's a lot I didn't know about you before I went on this journey, like- Oh, Yang! Did you know that Qrow's Semblance is Bad Luck?"

"What? No, I didn't know that. Uncle Qrow!"

Fine, fine. Jeez" their uncle says, his hands raised placatingly. "I guess you girls are old enough to know about what it was like. I've talked about Team Stark a few times but my childhood… well you know the truth now. Technically I wasn't 'lying' about how we grew up, the Branwen Tribe really are nomads." The fact that he has to make air quotes around the word doesn't make them buy it any more.

"Raven and I are twins, raised together under our father, Thorn Branwen, the leader of the tribe. He… gave us some harsh training. Gave everyone that 'training' really, we were just pushed a bit harder, the only ones to make it as far." Ruby gets the feeling that even telling them everything Qrow might be sugar coating the details (and why do they call it sugar coating? Sweets are awesome, so why refer to it as a bad thing?).

"He pushed the tribe so we could rob and pillage from any village we liked, the town guards were no match for us. Me and Raven tagged along when we became teenagers, and we beat out any other member of the tribe, collecting loot, knocking out guards, robbing caravans." The tone in his voice, it's a mixture of wistful and disappointed.

He sighs as he continues "We were the best, so it was only natural that we were the ones called upon to deal with the only problem that plagued the tribe: Huntsmen. As hard as he pushed us, we'd often have to retreat when hunters defended a town or attacked back. After they countered a caravan ambush, father was injured, he only barely escaped with his life. He knew he needed a counter to the huntsmen, so we were sent to Beacon, to learn their tricks and come back to the tribe after we were done."

Yang speaks up "But that didn't happen. You told us about how great Team STRQ was but Raven, she just left. Why?"

Qrow's voice is a little hoarse when he answers "I wish I knew. We were definitely facing more danger, given more responsibility, but I thought… I don't know what I thought. With Summer and Tai, we felt loved, happy for once. Ozpin and the other teachers gave us purpose and I was finally able to use my Semblance to help people… I knew that that was the family I wanted to protect. I might have liked a brawl as much as anyone in the tribe, and even cared for everyone but our old man, but Beacon was where we had made our home."

His hand twitches, like he's reaching for his flask, but he holds himself back. "Raven and I had to keep our cover, so we didn't talk much about our mission, not wanting to risk someone finding out. I dropped plenty of hints though, that I wasn't going to be leaving Beacon, and it seemed like she agreed with me. Raven stayed, even after we first found hints of the truth (though Salem definitely scared her), and by the time we knew everything and had graduated, she was still there."

"You knew everything? Ozpin hid Ruby's mission from you? I still don't know what he was thinking sending you there, that island sounded like a nightmare."

"Yang, c'mon" Ruby cried out. Her partner was suspicious enough of Ozpin, why did her big sister have to be too? "Ozpin didn't give me that mission, Professor Port did. And after I got lost in Mountain Glen Oobleck thought I may as well investigate a bit further. Ozpin only found out about it after I got myself shipped off."

Yang still looks unconvinced "Yeah, but-"

"I get it, it's a lot to take in. This is part of why Ozpin doesn't like throwing everything at anyone all at once, but Salem is leaving him many options." Yang shifts uncomfortably, no real answer to that. She's still a little hesitant, but Ruby thinks that Qrow's unwavering faith in Ozpin is helping convince her. "He didn't tell me about Merlot, yeah, but it wasn't as big as dealing with Cinder or her cronies and he didn't have a chance to afterwards. Don't worry, now that you're fully in the fold Ozpin isn't going to be hiding anything from you; I should know, I've been working directly for him for almost two decades now."

"Uncle Qrow, what was Summer like?" At Ruby's words both of them stop and turn instantly to look at her. "It's just- if you're more willing to talk about the past now, did she know everything too? How did she, you know, lead?"

Her uncle smiled faintly at that. "Summer, she was amazing. A gifted, kind-hearted silver eyed warrior, just like you. She brought us all together, when Tai and I bickered she got us to calm down, or her own partner remained aloof she'd somehow get Raven to chuckle along at her antics."

"She could destroy the Grimm with her eyes just like Rubes can?" Ruby (ok, mostly the others) had filled in Yang on what her Silver Eyes had done to the Nuckelavee. Ruby had already told Yang once about the ancient Wyvern she destroyed with them, but Yang had been kinda… out of it before she left on her journey.

"No, she couldn't actually. She didn't know much more than Ozpin did about the tales of Silver Eyes. Everyone with them is supposed to be some kind of warrior, gifted in fighting the darkness and Grimm, but destroying them with a glance? That's something I only ever saw from you kiddo" Qrow says, looking straight at Ruby's eyes.

"Eh, I'm not that gifted or anything special though. Until you taught me-"

"Kid, it's not bad being humble (or so I hear), but you're the best hunter I've ever trained. I think you're holding yourself to too high a standard at times, look where you are and how much you're still growing." Ruby guess that her training sessions with Pyrrha have certainly been noticed even while Qrow was busy trying to get hunstmen to help them. That's more of a background thought compared to the compliment that Qrow just gave her- she knew exactly how harsh a critic he could be, so that really meant something.

"You're amazing, Rubes" Yang says, smiling softly at her younger sister before turning back to Qrow.

"So, if mom was so great, what changed to make my mother leave? She left before Summer disappeared."

"I don't know. Raven always kept things close to the vest, but she was my sister. She cared for Taiyang and Summer too, I was sure of it. But then she left them, left all of us without a word. I admit, I've known where she was for a bit but… I didn't want to expose you to that until you were ready." Yang looks upset at that, but she isn't acting out and her eyes aren't flashing red, so it means on some level she recognized that it was a good thing.

"That was... the beginning of the end for Team Stark. Summer eventually told Tai about the crush she had on him and they got together. We still fought, did our jobs and whatever mission Ozpin needed but there weren't as many of us. Tai was looking after you two when I got called out on a mission. It didn't turn out to be much but the Grimm had been acting up around a small village a days journey away. By the time I got back I heard that Summer was gone on another mission and hadn't returned yet, even though it was supposed to be far closer."

"I never saw Summer use her eyes to eliminate the Grimm before, but on the night I came to find her… there wasn't a single Grimm anywhere within two miles of where she had been located. No sign of her either. I talked with Oz since he's been back and he theorized it might take an intensely traumatic experience to unlock that ability."

"Oh" is all Ruby can say. She'd been hoping that maybe she could get some more pointers in how to use her power on command. Ruby had only barely managed to save Pyrrha in the forest, but just trying to will herself to use her eyes again hadn't done anything close. She was worried that one day she might be too late and her friends could be… Well, it didn't matter for tomorrow, there wouldn't be any Grimm there. She put a smile on her face and grabbed her uncle and sister in a hug. No matter what happened Ruby trusted in her friends and she was sure that together they'd manage it, so she banished any unease she'd been feeling. Qrow and Yang seemed in a bit brighter spirits after the hug, which Ruby was glad for after how dour the conversation had gotten before. Everyone else seemed to have finished up as well, Oscar and Pyrrha coming in from outside (Pyrrha seemed to be doing better too; Ruby hoped that her and Ozpin had settled things out).

As Ruby went to bed she thought about the future. Tomorrow was the day, they'd win, stop Merlot and then move on to defeating Salem. Her mom was a great leader and Huntress and she was going to be the same. Ruby still wasn't sure about how big a deal she was, though the message was starting to sink in with multiple people telling her. She still felt she was a normal girl, though if her mom wasn't one or not being meant she was more like Summer Rose, well then Ruby would be happy with that. She drifted off thinking of rose petals, white cloaks and silver eyes.


	22. Chapter 22 - Gathering Storm

Chapter 22 – Gathering Storm

Pyrrha woke up with a yawn before picking up her Scroll that lay on the bedside table. A few more unread messages, most of them complaints and most of those from Avery. She gets that it's sudden, but she did tell them that this could happen at anytime. If anything, they will overall appreciate having it done and off their schedules.

Pyrrha had messaged them last night before she went to bed and only Umber had responded instantly with the fact that he'd be there. Boren must have seen it later and he responded much the same, if with fewer words 'I'll be there'. Wrangling them together for a time was difficult (or at least difficult to get Avery to agree to noon, until she sent a message to Lavender to bother him and she suddenly got a message three minutes later that he'd be there then).

Pyrrha got up and looked at the sun, still rising in the clear sky. She probably had another five hours before noon, at least. Looking down from her window she saw Ruby and the rest of her team sitting together in the courtyard, drinking coffee. That's a nice scene, and it reminds Pyrrha of where she should be.

She gets dressed, putting on her armor and boots with grim determination, as if she were preparing for war, which she muses, isn't far from the truth. She folds out Milo and Akouo a few times, testing them out and finding them to be in fine condition. Holstering them she takes her tiara and places it on her head, banishing any lingering doubts as she does so. 'We are virtuous warriors, and our glory shall rise above our foes, however infamous' she thinks to herself before walking downstairs. Before she's all the way down she hears Nora chanting "It's pancakes, it's pancakes, it's- Pyrrha!" Pyrrha smiles and waves at the bubbly girl and Ren. She notices that the apron Ren's wearing says 'Please do absolutely nothing to the cook' which is so fitting for him (and Nora, but to say one is to say the other too) that she wonders if he had it custom made.

"Hello Nora, Ren. Those pancakes smell delicious, room for one more at the table?" They're also a far superior nutritional choice to Marshmallow Pete's, the only thing more surprising than how she agreed with her manager to do that promotional deal is how the choice keeps haunting her (there's at least three boxes of the unhealthy cereal in the safehouse alone. Who thought it was a good choice of breakfast food?).

"Always" Ren says as he grabs another plate and starts scooping some pancakes onto them. That first plate is, naturally, scooped by Nora, at which point Ren begins serving Pyrrha and himself. They sit down and Pyrrha grabs an apple, using her ferrokinetic semblance to stick a knife into an apple sitting on the counter and then pull it back to her. Not that impressive overall, but the fact that she didn't need to make any motions at all to easily do it is a sign of improvement.

They talk, and it's mostly light stuff, like Nora's dreams or the training they've been doing recently, it's not like there's much new to talk about that they don't already know. Still, it's good and Pyrrha finds herself laughing and smiling along, enjoying Nora's tales and Ren's dry commentary (the delicious pancakes bring a grin to her face too, she can see why Nora's so crazy about them).

Nora, in her man zig zagging bursts of conversational energy, as the meal is winding down, says "I'm energized and ready to break some legs today, how bout you?"

There had been fears and doubts before, but Pyrrha was feeling ready, confident despite everything they'd been through. Or perhaps it was because of it. Everyone had grown and matured quite a bit from their first days at Beacon, she wasn't overly worried about how this attack would go. "I'm feeling good" she said, letting them know how she was doing both physically and mentally.

"We'll take them down together" Ren adds. There's a comfortable silence between the three of them, which lasts almost as many seconds before Nora breaks it.

"Soooo, tell me what these tournament fighters are like. Do they have tons of battle scars? Did they have to fight cage matches for their freedom? What's it like fighting those who were once your enemy?..." Nora's questions rattle on and Pyrrha sense that she probably won't be getting in a word edgewise soon (and that even if she did it would be unlikely to stop the flow).

"I think it's best if you just got to see them for yourselves, we'll be meeting them at Haven in a couple hours. I'm going to do a quick workout before we head out." Pyrrha then scoots away leaving Ren to deal with Nora's insatiable curiosity.

She looks around outside, but she can't seem to find Ruby or the girl's teammates there. Scouring the inside of the estate she hears some voices up the stairs on the third floor. She almost doesn't recognize it as Yang's voice at first, it sounds off to her. She sees the door to Yang's room slightly open and peeks inside to see Yang crying into her arms and Weiss sitting beside the usually fiery blond and comforting her.

They… seem to be having a moment. She hadn't realized that Weiss and Yang were that close. Deciding not to be a creep and spy on them any longer than she has, Pyrrha keeps on walking down the hallway, where she bumps into Ruby. "Ah, Ruby, I was wondering if you wanted to join me for a light workout." Just enough to get their muscles ready and in gear for this fight. Aura can compensate for a lot if one has to begin from a dead start, like being ambushed, but there's no need to put further strain on them.

"Thanks Pyrrha, but umm, I was actually looking for Yang…" She looks a little unsure of what to do but doesn't otherwise seem to be in bad spirits.

"Don't worry about Yang, she's talking to your partner right now, we should probably give them some space." Ruby looks confused for moment, pointing at her.

"But you're- oh, you mean Weiss!" She's back to her usual grinning self at that. "Yeah, Weiss has been really nice recently, it's great to have her back. All right, let's get ready to kick some bandit butt!" Ruby says, turning around and pumping her fist in the air as she heads outside. Pyrrha can't help but shake her head at the younger girl's indomitable spirit. Even daunted by the darkest of times, she doesn't let those pains hold her back for long, she keeps fighting on. Pyrrha hopes that one day, she'll inspire future generations with her tale as much as she's inspired by Ruby Rose right now.

The workout is kept light, even though Ruby has a bunch of 'new moves' she wants to try out. "Those are best kept for the Branwen tribe, no point in tiring ourselves out right now." Pyrrha tests out the functionality of her new and improved Akouo, and while she won't have every feature mastered for the coming battle, she's able to use it just as well as ever and the basic Lightning Dust augments are easy to handle.

Pyrrha glances up at the sky. It had been clear earlier in the morning, but it looks like a few clouds are starting to gather now, the sun partially obscured behind them, hanging a few degrees off of directly above them. "We should probably go back inside, we'll be leaving soon to get to Haven before noon."

The group gathers at 11, giving them plenty of time to make it to Haven. There aren't many people on this level inbetween the safehouse and Haven, but any that there are give the group a wide berth. They can probably sense the grim determination radiating off of the group of 8 hunters, however young some of them are, marching through the city.

Pyrrha doesn't know how to feel about being proclaimed a hunter by Ozpin. She get's why Ruby was so happy, and it brings a smile to her face to remember how exuberant the young girl felt, but she can't bring herself to feel the same way. She does want to be a true huntress, it's another step to achieving her destiny and she'll accept any additional responsibilities from that role… but she knows however old she gets it won't feel real until she's killed Cinder. She's not going to let herself get bogged down in that hatred and remorse again, but she knows herself enough to know that it'll take fixing her failure at the Battle of Beacon to feel like a proper Huntress in her mind.

They arrive at Haven and enter, the school as empty as it was the last time they entered it's grounds. Yang and Weiss were told about it but feeling how devoid of life it is leaves them looking the most uncomfortable out of the group about the place. They travel through the school and make their way to the Headmaster's office quickly.

Qrow decides to knock this time rather than busting down the door and Headmaster Lionheart gives a slightly muffled "Come in" in reply. When they enter they see Lionheart sitting at his desk. "Qrow I understand your desire to complete your mission, but I repeat we just don't have the- Oh, I see you've brought everyone with you." He looks a bit confused at the group. "I see you've added a few more children-"

"They're hunters, after all the shit they've been through they've earned it. Definitely more skilled than some graduates." Pyrrha does perk up a bit at his recognition. She might not like the faceless masses calling her the invincible, but a Hunter as skilled as Qrow recognizing her skill does feel nice, appeals to the small bit of pride she has.

"Even if they are exceptionally skilled students, Qrow, I don't believe that they'll be enough to take on the vicious Branwen tribe, and I still don't have any huntsmen for you."

"Actually Headmaster" Pyrrha interjects "I've gathered six more warriors to help us. They'll be meeting us here by noon."

Lionheart looks dumbfounded "What? But, I checked, I was so certain that all the huntsmen were…" He trails off and Pyrrha feels a little sorry for being suspicious of him. He must have been diligently looking for anyone that could have helped them.

"It's alright, I didn't ask huntsmen" Pyrrha explains. "I used my old tournament connections to get some of those fighters to help us. They don't know the whole truth of our mission, but they know we're going to be fighting the Branwen bandit tribe."

"Of course, tournament fighters, I was so foolish to overlook them" Lionheart mutters to himself.

"Hey, Leo, we need you to get us a ride to the tribe" Qrow says to him.

"I, I'll see what I can do, but it might take some time to get a bulkhead for us-"

"No Leo, not good enough. It's a single Bulkhead and you're the headmaster of an academy, how long can it take?" Qrow demands.

"You're coming with us too?" Ruby asks Lionheart.

"Ah, yes, I am. I'll need to get my Dust Disk out again, but yes, I figured given how dangerous this is that I should help you out." He looks incredibly nervous. Normally Pyrrha would be bolstered by the thought of having the Headmaster go with them but as it is, she's just a bit worried by his attitude.

"Who will be left to guard the school then?" Qrow asks with his arms crossed. "There's no one else here."

"Exactly, and without the Spring Maiden, there's nothing left worth guarding here with no one about."

"I wouldn't say 'nothing' exactly. Even with the students missing, the school still holds some value for the morale of the people. The White Fang are going to attack soon, we don't know when, but it's almost certain they'll attack soon. We'll be out for at least a few hours, keep the school safe till then. You know, following Ozpin's orders like you're supposed to."

"What?! Has Ozpin already come back?" Pyrrha makes sure not to glance down at Oscar, but he'd been acting pretty normally before then and his cane was retracted and concealed.

"No sign of him whatsoever. With the chaos at Beacon… we have no idea where he is or how long it might take him to get to us." He shakes his head mournfully as he speaks and if Pyrrha didn't know he was lying through his teeth she would have completely bought it. He 'moves on' from that sad topic to get back to the business at hand. "How soon can we expect the bulkhead?"

"Uh, well if you just give me a few minutes to call them, I'd say in about an hour?" He tentatively says before snapping at Qrow's raised eyebrow. "Look, this is a sensitive mission, it's not like you bothered to warn me about it before hand!"

"Alright, fine" Qrow says as he pulls up a seat by one of the tables. "Get comfortable kiddos, looks like we might have to wait for a bit."

"Uh- you ca- alright then" Lionheart stammers out as he sees the other hunters taking seats on the couch or some of the tables scattered about the room. "Actually, I just remembered I have someone perfect for the job." He types some things into the scroll hooked up to his desk and a stylized 'W' symbol appears. Oscar's frowning at it lightly from his seat, like it's familiar but something he can't quite remember.

"William, my old friend" Lionheart loudly says to the man on the other line. "I'm with some friends of mine, experienced hunters and new, on a very important mission and they need a bulkhead to the co-ordinates I'm sending you. They're here, right now, at Haven and, ah, quite insistent on leaving soon. I'll need you to send me a bulkhead and worthy pilot as soon as possible."

After a moment, from the other line Pyrrha hears an older man's voice, that sounds a bit odd like maybe he has a cough or something. "Really, I thought you didn't have enough people for that."

"Ah yes, I mentioned that mission a bit before didn't I? I thought it might take them a while, but they managed to get a whole bunch more fighters to help them. Isn't that lucky?" The other man just coughs. Lionheart continues on "Now you know where to go, and you can pick them up here. The bulkhead needs to be big enough for at least 14 people, I'm sure you can get on it quickly, thanks." Lionheart hangs up quickly, looking even more nervous than before.

He looks at the group and then says "I guess now, all that's left is to wait till they get here. And then the mission can proceed smoothly." His words are right but his tone and general expression aren't quite. Pyrrha wonders if he really is that nervous about the White Fang or if it's something else, like Ozpin hinted at. In either case, it looks like he's right, for now they can only wait, so Pyrrha settles down with everyone else.


	23. Chapter 23 - Warm Receptions

Chapter 23 – Warm Receptions

"Sooo, what's your weapon's name?" Ruby asks the nearest tournament fighter to her, a man with the double barrel sword, probably with lightning Dust running through it. It was well crafted and she couldn't wait to see it in action. He dressed kinda stuffy, but Ruby didn't really care about that. It was hard to care about anything other than the sweet weapons all these new people were carrying on the Bullhead with her (she had been surprised about the Bullhead itself, it was a fast model, but there were more than a few design flaws and structural weaknesses to this model, but hopeful that wouldn't be an issue here).

The Bullhead arrived just a bit after the last tournament fighter had gotten to Haven (this guy she was talking to had been a bit late along with the girl with the flail). Uncle Qrow gave them a (very abbreviated) mission outline: to capture Vernal and defeat Raven and her tribe, if possible. A couple of them seemed a little surprised or offput by that fact and wondering what was really going on, and Ruby couldn't blame them. Still, they all got on board and now they were in the air, and things were going good!

"Give him a little breathing room you dolt" Weiss says, pulling her back a foot from Avery's personal space.

"Aww, I thought we were on to nice Weiss" Ruby pouted.

"I am being nice, you're just geeking out too much about their weapons to remember your manners." How is it her fault if there are so many cool weapons here?

"Thank you, kindly" Avery says to Weiss before brushing off imaginary dust and addressing Ruby. "My blade is called Gigaslicer. While you might have been a bit too upfront about it, you did at least recognize the greatness of my blade right away." Ruby just nods awkwardly at that, not wanting to correct him that he was merely the first person in front of her after they took their seatbelts off with take off done.

"Psshaw, that's nothing, check out Rainbow Risk" the girl with belts for a shirt says, coming up behind them (Ruby thinks her name is Lavender?). She's hoisting up her giant flail and Ruby can see that instead of the usual spikes that might be on it, she has Dust crystals of every color sticking out of the metal head.

"Whoa" Ruby says pushing Avery out of the way to get a better look (he says something about them both of them being 'uncouth brutes'). "The steel alloy head is super tough, probably to withstand the Dust strikes, but how does she…" she mutters to herself before looking up at the gladiator. "Rainbow Risk looks awesome, but how do control which Dust effects you use in a fight?" A flail is an interesting weapon, it can get around a lot of guards and hit hard, a tricky weapon for others to predict. It's own design though makes it next to impossible to choose which Dust crystal would hit to ensure the right effect on your opponent (not to mention to avoid any backsplash from the Dust crystal onto the user.

She grins wickedly and says "That's the best part, I don't!" Ruby boggles at that, Avery just sighs resignedly and Weiss is the only one to speak up.

"That's insane" she softly says. Lavender just laughs maniacally in response. Ruby backs away, wondering how she's managed to live this long with such a weapon. She bumps into something solid behind her.

Turning around she sees Boren, the tall armored boy standing behind her. "Oh, sorry."

"… It's fine. I-" he falters for a moment before quietly asking, barely above a whisper "Why are you focused on this one bandit, Vernal? Why not Raven, their leader, or the whole tribe itself?" His voice is soft, but there's plenty of anger behind it.

"I'm sorry that I can't explain everything about it, but I assure you, we don't want anyone else getting hurt by the bandits. I don't want anyone to be hurt by bandits ever again, but, well we have our mission. While Vernal is the priority, we gathered this large a group so we can hopefully take out the entire tribe, Raven included. If all goes well all of them will be locked up after today. Also, Vernal isn't just some random bandit, it seems like she's pretty much Raven's second in command, and possibly even more dangerous than she is." Everyone in the bullhead has turned to look at her. Boren seems somewhat placated by them, while Denim's fist is in a tight grip at hearing how strong Vernal is.

The other conversations have kind of died down now, leaving the scarlet reaper feeling more than a little awkward. Still, Ruby goes to strike up a conversation with the older faunus lady who had been talking to Qrow. "Hi there, I'm Ruby Rose."

She snorts "Yeah, I heard your name before. What are you and that brat doing fighting bandits?" She says, jerking her thumb over at Oscar.

"Hey we're not brats!" Ruby pouts. "I'm a huntress, we all are" she says proudly. "Except Ren and Oscar and Uncle Qrow, I guess they're hunters (no, it doesn't matter how good you look in a skirt!)." There's a bit of laughter from everybody (including Qrow) at that, and the group starts to settle back down again.

Mary maintains a slightly skeptical look, though she does seem to be appraising her anew. "Even if you are a 'huntress', you're still a kid, you can't be prepared to take on bandits. The Branwen tribe aren't just a couple of thieves either."

Ruby meets her gaze with determination so fierce the other woman steps back a step. "You're wrong. We are prepared, and Raven and her tribe are just a couple of thieves. Stronger than most, maybe, but that doesn't make them anything more than that. We've faced worse together, and we'll come out on top here too." Ruby nods and clenches her fist.

The wolverine faunus holds up her hands in defeat "Alright, you've got me there. I guess you are ready for this." She shakes her head, like she still finds it hard to believe but can accept it.

"Of course. Besides, who are you to be saying we aren't prepared; you don't even have your weapon!" It's true, Ruby's checked her twice over while they were talking (which got a thumbs up from her Uncle that confused Ruby) and she only saw a few pouches for Dust crystals. No weapons, not even any concealed compartments or contraptions that looked like they might hint at a concealed weapon.

Mary smirks. "I don't need any fancy toys, I prefer to go the old fashioned way" she flexes her impressive biceps and shows of her claws as she talks. "Plus my Semblance can add even more danger." Another set of arms quickly grows out from underneath the first set." She poses a bit before letting the new set of limbs dissolve into dust.

That explains the holes in her outfit, they're to make room for her new limbs, and the Dust crystals… "You can use the Dust with your Semblance, can't you? Making the arms out of fire or ice and the like?"

She blinks "Yeah, how'd you know?"

"I have a friend who can do the same with her Semblance" Ruby says, smiling as she thinks of Blake.

Qrow starts chatting about some of his (mis)adventures and Ruby turns and sees Umber talking to Pyrrha, who looks uncomfortable with the amount of praise he's laying on to her. "Hey partner, what's up?" Sliding beside Pyrrha, but in a way that puts her kinda in between them.

Weiss is giving her an odd look, which the crimson clad scythe wielder is confused by until she remembers that she never got around to informing Weiss about that. She gives a slight shrug to the girl in white and glances over at the tournament champion, silently communicating how they had traveled together, grown closer, and come to rely on each other more when Weiss was gone and how they had become partners. Weiss looks at Pyrrha for a moment before nodding in approval and acceptance of her being a worthy partner of Ruby… At least that's what Ruby thinks is communicated.

Pyrrha looks at Ruby and the younger girl realizes that she must have finished responding to Ruby's question while she was distracted. That's ok, she thinks, roll with. Making a non-committal "Ah" to make it seem like she was paying attention. She then turns to Umber and says "I was also curious about your weapons" pointing at his net and spear.

He gives her a too white, almost blinding grin as he holds them up. He's kind of pretty? She thinks he's the kind of guy her classmates at Signal would have called handsome. "Yes, this is Patronul and Medes. Medes uses gravity Dust to help pin my foes in place for Patronul to finish them off." He flourishes the spear and has it shift into the form of a rifle. She thinks that he can also throw off people's timing, using the gravity Dust to lighten the weight on Medes before sending it crashing down. It's a decent combo.

"Want to see my sweetheart?" Before he has a chance to refuse, Ruby's pulling out Mechanical Rose and showing it off to him. She thought he might get a bit overwhelmed (and he is, at least a little bit), but mostly it seems like he wants to take down notes.

"Wow, I knew of how impressive your weapons are, Pyrrha, but I had no idea your partner's were almost as magnificent." Almost?! (like, Ruby loves Akouo and Milo, but no one beats Mechanical Rose) "I will endeavor to keep up with you in this most important mission." His eyes are gleaming with admiration for Pyrrha, and now newfound respect for Ruby. He wanders off and Ruby can tell that he's deep in thought of ways to improve his weapons.

Pyrrha mouths a 'thank you' to Ruby and she recognizes why (and even intentionally laid it on a bit thick with the weapons there to try and help; she can notice sometimes that her weapon-focus can be a bit overwhelming for others), but she doesn't exactly get it. He seemed alright enough, why was Pyrrha so against being admired like that? Ruby wants to ask, but figures this isn't the best time or place. Mary's the farthest away from her and Pyrrha though, so she does lower her voice and ask "Do you know why Mary…" 'had such a problem with me and Oscar' goes unmentioned but not unheard.

"Ah, Mary has a couple kids of her own, the eldest isn't much younger than Oscar."

"Really?" Ruby says, shocked. She didn't look anywhere near that old. She notices that Mary's looking over at her, and when she catches her gaze the faunus winks at her. Ruby blushes, knowing she was louder than she had thought she was. Pyrrha opens her mouth to say something, looking both amused and slightly curious-

Suddenly the bullhead lurches a bit. Everyone's thrown off their footing a bit (save Weiss and Pyrrha who used their semblances to keep theirs) but no one falls down or crashes into the walls. The voice of the pilot comes through the speakers "Sorry folks, but we're experiencing a bit of turbulence, I'm gonna take us down a bit to get out of it. You might want to take your seats till we're out of this, though."

Uncle Qrow moves up to the captain's quarters instead of sitting down. "Hey, pilot boy-"

"Uh, that's not my nam-"

"Don't care. Pilot boy, where are we?"

"Oh, we're almost at our destination, just another klick and we'll be there."

"What!?" Qrow exclaims in alarm. "Get us up above the clouds now!"

"What's your deal geezer?" Qrow just glares at the young pilot.

"They can see us" he spits out, pointing out the pilot's window. Ruby's sitting down and can't see it, but she can put together that it's bad news for their surprise assault if the bandits can see them.

"So? They'll just think we're going to pass over them. I'll set us down before they even know it" the pilot says cockily.

"Not good enough" Qrow hisses and yanks the pilot by the front of his shirt. "Raven _will_ know something's up if she catches wind of this." And he's worried she will because of his Semblance. Looking back on it, now that she knows the truth behind his semblance, it does explain a lot of his behaviors.

"Look, I can't go back up, the turbulence came out of nowhere man!" He seems to be losing his confidence a bit now.

"Came out of now-" he whirls around and sees a black portal tinged with red open up just behind him, blocking most of the doorway to the rest of the passengers. Time seems to slow for Ruby, as she starts pulling off her seatbelt. Pyrrha and Umber are doing the same while everyone else is staring in shock at it. Ruby hears her Uncle shout "Oh SH-". Ruby's seatbelt is clear but before she can even begin to turn into petals and rush forward, a gout of flame bursts through the portal towards the rear followed a split second later by an explosion of more fire and glass shards. The first fireball tears through the back of the Bullhead, blowing it open and melting much of the center floor of the bullhead (the seats were on the sides so the group avoids getting burnt too badly by that, though they can still feel the heat through their auras), and breaking open the roof at parts. The explosion rips the cockpit off from the rest of the now disintegrating frame as the hurtle uncontrollably through the air.

A/N: So, this chapter took a bit more working than I originally thought, but not too much so. I thought this was a good way to show the OCs a bit more and have some fun before things went downhill.


	24. Chapter 24 - Fire in the Sky

Chapter 24 – Fire in the Sky

It's funny, almost, that the first thought through Pyrrha's head as they hurtle towards their doom is 'and Jaune thought it was crazy for Ozpin to fling us off of a cliff for initiation'.

It was back in their second semester at Beacon that he had brought the issue up, after everyone in Team Juniper knew about his falsified transcripts. "I'm just saying, there's no test for Aura before you go to beacon, and- and even if there was, some people have weak Auras, they could be seriously hurt by that! When would we even use a 'landing strategy' in real life anyways? Maybe Ozpin was some hotshot back when he was our age, but…" She didn't remember the rest of it too clearly, or how his rant had begun for that matter, even though it was only a couple of months ago. She knew he was annoyed, but not that upset though. None of them had been back then.

The small smile fades from her mouth as she turns her focus away from the past and on to present, pressing matters. Like the fact that presently, she'll be pressed into a fine paste on the ground if she doesn't do something about it. She's out of her seatbelt and her seat is falling down just beneath her. Pulling her legs up, she uses the seat to launch herself forward through the air. She weaves her way around the debris field in front of her, which is more scattered but smaller than the one forming behind her as the main body of the Bullhead falls apart.

The other hunters are doing well enough, Weiss hopping forward on her glyphs, Yang using Ember Cecilia and her new arm to slip around the shards of glass and torn off chunks of metal. Ren and Nora make their way through as well, Nora's smashing through the obstacles in her path and propelling herself forward with grenades while Ren comes up behind her and uses Stormflower to slingshot or hook himself off of the large debris pieces, often using the ones that Nora's sent his way. Ruby is easily in the lead though, the recoil from her scythe and the incredible maneuverability and speed her Semblance gave her pushing her just ahead of Yang. The ex-tournament champion throws her shield down and under her feet, gliding through the sky with her Polarity. She surfs to the front of the group, beside Ruby and sees them angling towards the bandit camp. They might have been caught off guard and their ambushed ruined by Raven, but that doesn't mean their attack will stop there.

Pyrrha looks behind her and sees that the tournament fighters aren't doing so well, very few of them have guns or any training with this kind of aerial disaster. Oscar likewise was caught off guard, might have even been knocked out by the initial attack with how he doesn't seem to be moving. She reaches out and any seatbelts still trapping them in are pulled off and any chunks of metal nearby them are pushed away. She moves to go back and help them when Qrow suddenly appears out of nowhere (likely in his crow form he escaped her sight in the confusion).

"I'll help the others, you all go on ahead" he calls out before shifting to a bird in an instant and racing back. Right, he can actually turn into a flying creature and is a professional huntsman, he'll have a better handle of that situation, Pyrrha tells herself before gliding forward.

She's actually having to remind herself to let herself be pulled down by gravity while gliding forward with her shield so she stays with the rest of the group. It's different from how she usually moves on it. Also, more tiring, even without having to fight gravity and lift her body up with her shield, this prolonged use is starting to drain her Aura.

She sees it fast approaching, the bandit camp just as Yang described it. Well, almost exactly, Yang didn't mention a bunch of bandits waiting for their arrival with guns aimed at them as they were about to approach. Pyrrha might have been worried, if they had anything like Mechanical Rose (and more to the point, anything like Ruby's skill in firing it), but they had pistols for the most part, maybe a heavy machine gun or two mixed in there. She waited until her and Ruby just got into firing range before extending her hand out and pushing with Polarity. The guns were all sent wildly to their sides, the couple of shots triggered didn't land anywhere near them, and a few of the thugs even dropped their weapon in surprise.

Pyrrha landed in a second after, jumping off her shield and thrusting at one of the front line goons with her spear. The blow broke his aura and her shield whipped over where she landed to knock him out. She switched Milo into sword form as she grabbed Akouo out of the air and knocked aside a clumsy attempt at bludgeoning her.

The thugs try to surround her, attack all at once and overwhelm her. Not a bad strategy, she thought, but their skills and teamwork need improving. Also, before she was even done her first sword swing Ruby had cut through the left flank of the twenty-odd group of bandits, slicing through them like a … scythe through wheat. Pyrrha would reflect on her poor metaphor skills if she wasn't busy tossing one bandit into another and slashing back a couple more.

Pyrrha dodges and blocks their attacks, drawing their attention while Ruby hangs back to pick them off with her rifle. Then the air in front of her explodes and she's sent flying back. It doesn't take long to realize that she just got hit by a Semblance when she sees the woman standing with her arms held out and a cutlass by her side. She has medium length blond hair, didn't fit any description she had heard, but Pyrrha supposes it's foolish to assume that no one else in the camp has any skill.

Pyrrha flips herself back up, tripping down a brute that tried to run at her with a knife. The explode-y bandit isn't too strong though, Pyrrha notes, as she watches the other woman get hit square in the back by two of Ruby's shots. The explosion barely damaged her, more a surprise than anything. The bandit raises her arms to blast Ruby, but the scarlet clad reaper has already zipped out of the way, which leaves the bandit open to being punched in the back by Yang's new arm as she falls out of the sky.

"You call that an explosion? Let me show you an explosion!" Yang shouts as her plants the bandit's head to the ground and makes an eruption of fire around her. Pyrrha notes that she'll have to ask the yellow huntress later whether that's part of her semblance or dust or some combination of the two as she backhands a chip toothed bandit into unconsciousness. She recognizes that she shouldn't be paying attention to that as a battle is going on, even if Weiss, Nora, and Ren have entered the fray and are taking the bandits out with ease.

What does catch her attention is the sudden burst of light that erupts in the trees a mile back. The light is a fluctuating mix of blue and yellow that burst into a dome rising above even the tallest of the trees for a second before winking out of existence just as fast. That was where Qrow and the others were. Pyrrha takes a single step towards the forested area before every instinct she has screams at her. In a desperate move the Mistralian huntress dives in the opposite direction, calling on her semblance to push her back further, barely avoiding the modest pillar of fire that erupted where she had been. Trusting those same instincts as she rolls away, Pyrrha raises her shield over head as she stands up, catching an arrow that shatters into a thousand fragments of glass upon Akouo.

"Pyrrha, it's been a while." Pyrrha whips up her shield and her eyes confirm what she knows already to be true (even if the glass and fire didn't give it away, Pyrrha knows she would recognize that voice anywhere). She has a shorter haircut now and her dress is slightly different now, leaving her right shoulder bare and the left arm covered past the hand in loose red silk. She even spots a mask covering the top right side of the Maiden's face with a few scars peaking out from under it (what happened to cause that to her?). The fiery red anima is flickering out only from her uncovered eye now, but for all her differences, Pyrrha knows her instantly.

Glaring at that one hateful yellow eye Pyrrha grinds out her name "**Cinder.**" The Fall Maiden smiles wickedly, conjures two blades of gleaming glass and descends upon the huntress.


	25. Chapter 25 - Desperation Rising

Chapter 25 – Desperation Rising

Ruby sees them clash, Cinder and Pyrrha dancing with their blades clashing against each other. Pyrrha's fighting as well as she ever has, her footwork is great, she's parrying every blow, mixing her throws in with her regular weapon strikes, controlling her weapons with her Semblance to help… and it's not enough. Cinder's flight gives her a huge advantage against the melee strikes Pyrrha attempts, and her Maiden powers are pushing Ruby's partner back even when she manages to back.

Ruby runs forward to aid her, but is kicked out of the way by Mercury, leaping out of the forest. "Hey there-" Ruby doesn't give the arrogant fighter a chance to finish that response, dashing towards him with her semblance. Mercury smirks and readies himself to kick her when he sees her split into three different groups of rose petals and hesitates, not knowing which one to hit. The hesitation costs him as Ruby reforms behind him, scythe slicing towards his shoulder. His head turns and his eyes widen in surprise, trying to burst away with an air shot to send him out of the way of her vicious strike. It doesn't work, one leg is still in the air as he prepared to hit her before, his other leg can't generate the power to hop fully away, the extra momentum from his air shot countered by a shot from Mechanical Rose, pushing the blade to catch him in the side. It digs into his aura and sends him flying through the air.

Mercury, in a display of dexterity she'd find impressive in any other situation, rights himself mid-tumble and using two air shots sends himself rocketing back towards her, trying to get inside her scythe's reach. A move she anticipates, changing it to sword form, slicing at him. He dodges and counters the strikes with his hands but doesn't manage to pressure her enough to ensure his kicks can land past her footwork and dodging.

"That blade looks familiar, I wonder if you'll end up just like that robot?" He taunts her but Ruby doesn't respond – she has no words for the man who helped murder Penny. She does note that he's angling her away from Cinder and Pyrrha for some reason, but not able to do it as well as he would like, only getting her moved ninety degrees, not able to interpose himself between them like he did at the beginning.

He dances inwards and Ruby puts her new training to good use, throwing a kick at his left leg. Mercury checks the kick easily, but before he can counter Ruby uses her Semblance to zip above him and land an axe kick on his head with her other leg. His head and body dip forward a bit, but the blow was more glancing than she had hoped and he's raised his head and guard up again quickly. Ruby lands and wades in, feinting with her sword, letting him preform an easy disarm. "Ha! What're you going to do now?" Ruby grabs her right fist with her left hand and drives her right elbow into Mercury. The blow lands a bit lower than Pyrrha had taught her, but Ruby's sure that she'd agree with this tournament illegal move for the silver haired bastard she's fighting.

Mercury doubles over in pain and Ruby doesn't waste a moment, her hands rising up to grab around the back of his head and throw an oblique knee into his jerk face. He manages to guard against it, crossing both his hands in front of his face and pushing away the knee, then slips under her grip and sends a spinning sidekick, into her torso. Ruby grunts and is pushed back, and notes that he actually sent her closer to Cinder and Pyrrha, their duel still raging behind them and now in the forest itself, some of the trees ablaze from Cinder's magic. Mercury doesn't look like he cares about that or that he's looking down on her with condescension anymore, he just looks angry now.

Ruby presses a button on her bracer and darts forward with a punch, but pulls back well out of range, letting Mechanical Rose be called back to her while Mercury is too distracted to stop it. Switching her weapon back to a scythe, the crimson cloaked huntress twirls it around to deflect Mercury's kicks and occasional grabs before tossing the tailspike at him. He twists his head to the side, but it still grazes his cheek, striking his aura there. Ruby uses the opening to plant her scythe behind herself and swing a kick at him, which he hops out of the way of.

Ruby notes he's smart enough not to take 'advantage' of the opening she presented with her back, likely deducing (correctly) that any range, angle or movement where he tried to move in would have placed him in her scythe's range as she whipped it around behind herself to counter. She turns around and faces him, noting the anger still present in his eyes, but now accompanied by a trace of fear too. He knows that she's better than him and he'll lose to her at this rate.

"Ahhhh!" Pyrrha's panicked scream grabs her attention as she sees them through the blaze and smoke. Cinder is floating above her new partner, one hand holding a sword of glass the other hand sending bolts of lighting into Pyrrha, convulsing with one knee planted on the ground.

"This is how you electrocute someone, you foolish girl." Cinder's voice is smooth and almost conversational, were it not for the underlying tremor of hatred in every word.

Ruby's thoughts are distracted by Mercury's boot kicking the upside of her head before she can raise her guard. Ruby stumbles back and regains her footing, shifting Mechanical Rose into rifle as she steps back. Mercury tries to move after her as she approaches Cinder but is slowed by her shots. She can tell he's learned the trick to deflect regular rounds with his aura. A normal bullet he could basically kick away, but her laser rounds aren't susceptible to that move, and fighting his ingrained reaction trips him up for long enough that Ruby can get away.

Flying towards Cinder she pulls back Mechanical Rose before bringing it in, boosting it's speed with burst of laser fire to strike at the Fall Maiden. Her shot strike is blocked with a single hand, brimming with Aura before the other hits Ruby in the gut and knocks her back down. "You." Cinder states with malice and… fear? Ruby doesn't know why the older woman is afraid, but she'll take it, so long as it gets her eyes off Pyrrha.

"Pyrrha, go! I'll hold her-" Ruby coughs a bit from the smoke, but Pyrrha gets the general idea.

Her face is pained and skin pale, she looks more desperate than Ruby's ever seen her before. Pyrrha glances up again at the witch hovering above them before backing off "Draw her out of the fire, don't- don't risk your life." Her voice breaks and Ruby just nods, not breaking eye contact with Cinder, who looks as if she's puzzling things out before laughing. Cinder's voice isn't broken by inhaling smoke nor is her one blazing eye stung by it; it looks like there's a small stream of air swirling around her head, keeping it clear of irritants.

As Pyrrha runs out of the blaze Ruby cocks her head wondering what could be so funny to her. "What are you laughing about?" She asks, half out of genuine curiosity and half because she hopes the villain will monologue and be delayed long enough for Ruby's Uncle and the rest of their reinforcements to arrive (whatever that light was she's sure that Qrow and Ozpin could deal with it).

"You really don't know, do you? My revenge will be oh so sweet." Ruby has no time to decipher the meaning of her words as Cinder is sending rapid fire arrows after her, striking out and attempting to pin her in place. Ruby knows enough this time to pull her cloak out of the way so it doesn't get pinned like it did against the Nevermore on her Initiation at beacon.

Her movements aren't enough, and Cinder rushes her from the sky, literally rocketing down with flame bursting from her hands to appear on her left side in a flash, two glass swords forming in her hands as she swings them at Ruby, one high and one low. Ruby tosses Mechanical Rose to her left hand and catches both blows on the shaft of her weapon. The force still sends her sprawling through some burning bushes, the flames licking away at her Aura. Dazedly picking herself up, the scarlet huntress barely has time see and throw herself out of the way of the flame bursts and glass shards Cinder sends her way from beyond her smoke obscured sight.

The shots aren't very accurate, but somehow the Fall Maiden seems to get a bead on her no matter how stealthy and Blake-like the younger girl tries to be. How is she doing it? Maiden pow-? Her wondering is cut off by both a moment of brilliance and a lancing pain in her side as a glass spike strikes her ribs and takes away a bit more Aura. She figures it out, it's not magic, it's Aura. The technique one can use to 'see' while blind. Cinder must have figured out a weaker version of it to compensate for her missing eye, which is helping her target through the smoke here.

Ruby's disoriented, but pretty sure she's almost at the edge of the forest area now. Calling upon her Semblance Ruby dashes out of the trees, ready for an attack that might try and stop her movement. She's less prepared for the older woman to let loose a mini horizontal hurricane and push her further along than she was.

Ruby reforms and finds herself all the way at the other end of the bandit camp. It looks like there were more thugs here, waiting past the vanguard to attack the strike team Ozpin put together. Well, technically they still are here, they just all happen to be unconscious now, and the battlefield plus their wounds makes it pretty clear that her teammates were here.

Moving past the tents and a slightly busted cage and runs to get a clear view of the open space of the camp. Weiss and Yang are fighting someone who matches Vernal's description, beating back the Spring Maiden together, their teamwork throwing off her magic and sending her falling from the sky and crashing to the ground. Ren and Nora are clearing up the rest of the bandit goons (Ren's stamina training is paying off; he doesn't seem to be fatigued or anything at all yet) while Pyrrha is beating up Mercury. Where did Mercury and Cinder even come from? And where was-

There's a thud and vibration by her feet but nothing she could see, for just a moment. Then reality shifts before her eyes, Cinder standing a dozen feet away, her once hidden arm now revealed, Grimm black in color and texture and stretched ridiculously towards her. It looks like it would have hit, but a beam holding up a tent cracked and has fallen right in front of her, the arm bouncing off to the side.

The fights are somewhat like what she saw, but slightly off. Vernal isn't fighting in the air, but on the ground, and holding off Weiss and Yang without using any Maiden powers. Ren and Nora have beat some more of the bandits, but there are still more coming at them, some of the ones left throwing out some Dust effects or Semblances at them. Pyrrha's holding her own against Mercury, but his air shots are a problem for her, and the beating she took at Cinder's hands has taken it's toll (the Mistralian's stance is off, like she's trying to compensate for an injury, possibly a twisted ankle).

Ruby spotting Emerald standing off to the side of her is what puts it all together. Emerald must have used her Semblance on her, caused her to hallucinate those things before being surprised by the beam that fell down. Something like that happening must mean…

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby shouts, waving at him as he exits a (non-flaming) part of the forest. Cinder retracts her arm rapidly, pulling it in as fast as the Nuckelavee could, as she and the others turn to look at Ruby's Uncle leaving the forest, distractedly waving at her as he parries a few blows from Raven, wearing her Grimm mask. The rest of the group bursts out behind them, a semi-organized move as they fight off against the bandits, Oscar deflecting shots from an older Atlesian man with his cane.

Ruby takes a potshot at Emerald while she's distracted with the arrival of the rest of her group. The shot knocks her back and youngest Huntress rushes in with Scatter, attacking the bandits fighting the gladiators. Their defense turns into a sudden offense, switching gears now that they've grouped up again with Ruby and her teams.

Together, with Ruby's help they start beating the thugs up. Their skills are good and if anything Pyrrha was slightly underselling it when Ruby sees them in action. Umber catches two deftly with his Gravity Dust Net and takes out their Auras with a series of lightning fast jabs of his spear. Denim blocks two swords and a club swing with his katana, letting Mary rip into the three unfortunate thugs from behind with six sharp claws. Boren is knocking the bandits aside in a fury, ripping through them with his huge sword and heavy sweeping blows, roaring while he does so. As effective as it is though, his charge leaves him open, something Ruby notices, tapping Avery on the shoulder and directing him to work with her and cover his flanks and rear. Avery's lightning sword stuns them while Ruby's scythe reaps into those stunned or overreaching, making Boren's charge a devastating hit against the bandits that doesn't end with him being swarmed (Ruby's worried about him, but figures this might not be the best time to bring it up).

Lavender swings her flail into a group of goons, the hit crashing through the guard of one (who only had a pistol for defence) but the explosion of sound and ice knocks away one bandit beside the first and freezes Lavender in place as well, sticking her legs and one arm in the ice. Racing back, Ruby smacks aside a bandit trying to take advantage of her mostly immobilized state, following it up with a point blank shot the chest that sends her flying away. Lavender breaks herself free and says "Thanks for the save kid. Man, I don't know why it happened like that, usually Rainbow Risk never betrays me."

Never 'betrays' her? That thing was insane as far as weapons go, it's a miracle that she didn't… always… Ruby's thoughts grind to a halt as she catches a glimpse of her Uncle fighting Raven, their swords crossed. Her Uncle's semblance! His brings bad luck to those nearby, while Lavender, she must have a Semblance that brings good luck to her but didn't mention it cause she's like Pyrrha which makes her weird about letting others know her Semblance!

"C'mon, I need you to help Ren and Nora break some kneecaps" Ruby shouts over the din of the battle to the tournament fighter right beside her. She grabs the girl before she has a chance to agree and crosses the battlefield speedily, tossing Lavender at the group before moving off again to get a better view of everything going on (keeping a careful note of her other senses so Emerald can't try to pull any tricks on her again).

"OK!" The girl shouts back, rolling into formation with Nora. Together they burst through any defences the bandits over there have with reckless abandon, laughing manically as they do so. Ruby worries about the monstrous duo she has created, but pushes those aside, noticing that battlefield's changed up again. Emerald and Mercury are fighting against Yang and Weiss, Pyrrha's fighting Cinder again… Pyrrha looks angrier than Ruby's ever seen her, while Cinder is arrogantly smirking down at her. Vernal is helping out the other group of bandits from the sidelines, shooting at the allies Pyrrha gathered while Qrow fight Dr. Watts- wait, where's Raven?

Ruby turns around to be greeted by a hilt to face, Raven sending her crumpling into the dirt. Ruby picks herself off the ground, calling Mechanical Rose back to her side from where it had fallen just in time to block an odachi overhand chop. Ruby feels a kick land against her gut almost the instant after her block, the blow sending her rolling away. Ruby rolls with the momentum, picking herself up with space between them, then desperately interposes her scythe between her and the bandit leader. She's too fast, and- too strong! Ruby thinks in a panic as the former huntress pushes her blade in closer. Raven's masked face conceals any possible emotions she might be showing and as Ruby is forced down further, sinking to one knee, she hopes she thinks she can understand why Raven is so feared, and hopes that one of her teammates can help her quickly.

A/N: The next chapter takes place earlier on from Pyrrha's perspective (right after her last chapter left off), because the whole fight has been confusing enough and I'd rather not skip out on a big chunk of her fight with Cinder, which Ruby only saw snippets of


	26. Chapter 26 - Destinies Collide

Chapter 26 – Destinies Collide

Pyrrha raised Milo to deflect Cinder's slash as the woman came down at her, the Mistralian huntress following it up with a stab of her own. Cinder deflected the counter with her second glass sword and flew back away. Pyrrha almost ground her teeth at how frustrating it all was. She usually would have followed up her attack with a shield bash, but Cinder's flight put the angle all wrong to make a move there (and even with Polarity, throwing it up would have left her open for a counter).

Dancing away from a bolt of fire exploding at her feet, Pyrrha's starting to realize how much Cinder's flight gives her an advantage in every move. Another glass arrow shatters on Pyrrha's shield, this one close to hitting. She switches Milo to javelin form, ready to hurl her weapon one she spots her foe.

Pyrrha drops her shield a fraction to get a sight line on the Fall Maiden, only to raise it again as she spots Cinder rocketing towards her, hands stretched back with flames erupting out of them, seeming to propluse Cinder far faster than her regular flight speed is. Pyrrha itches to stab the monster that took Jaune from Remnant in front of her eyes, her muscle's twitch as the memory of how to perfectly pierce her foe comes to mind, but she holds all of it back.

A smart choice, it turns out, as Cinder brings her arms in together with sweeping scimitar blow, smashing into Pyrrha's guard and pushing her back into the forest. Cinder does a mixture of flight and running, moving with the momentum she has and raining blow after blow upon Pyrrha's guard. The wild blows catch Pyrrha off guard and push her back further, her feet making small groves in the dirt as she tries to hold her ground but is pushed back nonetheless. There are openings, but nothing that wouldn't leave Pyrrha as open as Cinder is to take, getting a trade off of Aura for Aura at best. Even if her style and fighting philosophy didn't disdain such moves, Pyrrha wouldn't be sure about such a trade off favouring her rather than her nemesis.

Pyrrha waits for the opening, the moment when the blows falter- she sees it and strikes! He spear thrusts out a simple opening, but one that will set up her next move. Cinder slips to the side, moving along the attack, Pyrrha steps in herself with a shield bash to- she's dropped her right sword. Pyrrha notices it too late to pull back her attack and is a fraction of a second too late to protect her abdomen from Cinder's palm, the Aura gathered there sending a shockwave through the huntress-in-training.

Pyrrha's own Aura absorbs the attack, but even weaker than some of the strikes Ren shows, it tosses her backwards, the force knocking Milo and Akouo out of her hands, though her Semblance brings them back before she's even managed to regain her footing. Looking up she can see that Cinder is just walking slowly towards her. Is she worried about a trap or some desperation move on Pyrrha's part, or just contemptuously looking down on the scarlet haired girl. Well, looking down on her more than usual, Pyrrha clarifies to herself as she rises, looking up at that infuriating smirk that seems glued to Cinder's face.

Pyrrha moves in, determined to set the pace this time, jabbing and spinning her spear around, blocking Cinder's slashes with her shield. The older woman is good, even Pyrrha can grudgingly admit that about her skill, but Pyrrha doesn't let that stop her. Increasing the speed of her strikes with her Semblance, Pyrrha moves in more aggressively, the flurry just beginning to push Cinder back when Pyrrha switches Milo to sword form, grips it with both hands and sends a devastating power slash in at Cinder's side. Akouo is held in place with Polarity to cover herself while she makes the strike, one of Cinder's blades hitting it and stopping Cinder- no, pushing Cinder backwards. Cinder's reach was longer than Pyrrha expected, causing her strike to only nick at Cinder's Aura. The retaliatory strike back smacks into Pyrrha's right arm and takes another bit of her Aura, though the ex-Beacon student rolls with it.

Cinder moves in again, her raised swords shifting into a bow rather than slashing. The bottom bow limb catches against Milo while Cinder knocks and launches thee arrows at once against Pyrrha. Akouo blocks the two aimed at her torso while twisting her head to avoid the third. It still skids off her cheek, another dig at her Aura, followed by Cinder sliding down and sending a hammerfist into Pyrrha's liver, knocking her back again (though this time Pyrrha doesn't lose her grip on her weapons and lands standing).

Having felt it twice Pyrhha can analyze that attack better. That move is indeed a lot like Ren's, less strong, but with a quicker build up time. Likely also more Aura wasted per use, less focus on efficiency, but it looks like Cinder doesn't seem to care about that.

"I'm disappointed, I thought you of all people could provide a bit of a challenge. Still, better than your pathetic boyfriend I suppose." Cinder's trying to get to her. It works, and Pyrrha rushes in, unable to push down her anger. Cinder weaves back from the attacks, her laughter echoing in Pyrrha's head.

Cinder raises her bow and prepares to launch an arrow at the Mistralian, but Pyrrha headbutts through it, shattering the bow and the arrow, before it even finished forming. She's not in a position to do much else than throw a haymaker over her head, but that move catches her off guard and knocks Cinder back. She recovers midair, spinning with her hand catching the ground and making a line of glass that slows her. Pyrrha continues her rush forward, before the glass line shatters at a stomp from the Fall Maiden's heel. The shards of it hang in the air for a split second before pelting Pyrrha from every angle.

The crimson haired warrior blocks the ones aimed at her most vital spots, managing to deflect two with Milo as well, but there are too many and a couple shots stagger her. The flow of battle back in her favour again, Cinder presses, pushing Pyrrha back with glass scimitars and letting her seem to disengage before pegging her with three arrows.

Panting from her exertion and aura depletion, the ex-champion looks up at her foe. The black haired, black hearted woman is looking down at her, smirking, before her eye reignites and she rises into the air. Why is she looking so pleased? Why didn't she do that befor- the answer hits Pyrrha: Cinder was testing herself. During this bit of fighting in the forest, Pyrrha realizes _Cinder wasn't using her Maiden powers_. She was trying to prove to herself that she was a better fighter without her powers… and she had.

Pyrrha looks on in despair and fear at Cinder above her. For a moment, even the anger's been overridden by how afraid she feels. The arrogant woman says "Well, I suppose this is fitting then, you'll die just like your boyfriend: Pointlessly." She remakes her bow and levels an arrow at the younger woman. Pyrrha freezes for half a second, thinking of all the pain Cinder's caused her. Everything that could have been with Jaune, the pain she's dealt with and how she's grown. Of everything she wants to do now, of the hopes and dreams beyond revenge that are slowly coming back to her. Of how Ruby will feel when Cinder beats her, and the youngest Huntress finds her body.

She snaps into focus and hurls her shield forward with all her might, determined to not let that future come true. The shield smashes through the arrow, which simply reforms around it, now flying at a slightly different angle towards her leg while Cinder dodges Akouo. Pyrrha's hand twitches violently and she manages to hit the arrow harmlessly to the side with Milo, a move only managed from countless hours of having to react to Ruby's insane momentum shits. Akouo smashing into the back of Cinder's head comes from the practice she put in to controlling her Semblance without even a single twitch to give away her attack.

Cinder's flight wobbles, and Pyrrha rockets up to meet her, jumping the first few meters then pulling herself up by her armor with her Polarity. Milo's back in spear form and she sends her weapon lashing out, nicking the Fall Maiden and sneaking past the reach of her blades while she grabs Akouo with her free hand.

Cinder hisses and falls back and downwards slightly before hurling her swords as a distraction and grabbing the spear's haft, blocking the point of Pyrrha's jab with an aura technique concentrated on her other hand. She leverages the grip, kicks aside Pyrrha's shield bash and blasts herself and Pyrrha forward, smashing the huntress through multiple trees in the forest, her blazing hand setting them alight as they pass.

Pyrrha grits her teeth and, unable to counter the Fall Maiden's force effectively, directs them downward. Cinder pushes in, ready to crush her against the earth, giving Pyrrha the opening she was looking for, sliding her shield underneath her and using it to give her leverage a few feet above the ground to kick her foe up and over her. She rolls of the ground, landing on her feet and flinging her spear at Cinder, sending her shield to do the same. Even off balance, Cinder quickly regains herself and deflects Pyrrha's weapons… and then does so again as Pyrrha sends them back around and at Salem's minion multiple times, buzzing around her head like a pair of annoying wasps.

"Enough!" She cries out as a massive gust of wind blows them off course for a moment. "I don't know where you got your second wind from, but it ends here!" She throws both her hands down in fists and it's like the air above her started raining down pillars of fire. Pyrrha ducks and darts past the flames as best she can, moving in on Jaune's killer. Jumping up, just clearing a flame strike, Pyrrha moves towards Cinder, who flies haughtily away. The smirk on her face disappears when she sees that Milo is under the huntress' feet. Pyrrha leaps off her spear, Milo flying to her outstretched hand, before she brings it around and buries it in Cinder's gut, a burst of electricity racing through her as well.

Pyrrha falls to the ground and drops the blisteringly hot shield as she does so. The electricity upgrades at least withstood the heat well (she makes a note to thank Ruby a million times over if she gets through this). Pyrrha tries to get up before falling down again as she's struck by lightning erupting from Cinder's hands. The madwoman says something but Pyrrha can't hear her over the pain that's coursing through her everything, barely even able to make out Cinder's enraged face.

Suddenly the pain stops and Pyrrha sees Ruby hanging in the air, clashing against Cinder before she's knocked down. Pyrrha looks on at Ruby in horror and when the younger girl tells her to go Pyrrha almost sends her flying away by the scythe to make sure that Cinder can't kill her. She'd certainly die, but Ruby would be safe…

It's hard, to hold back from that response, but she trusts Ruby, and if anyone can survive Cinder for a bit, it's her. They need to get out of this and back to their allies. "Draw her out of the fire. Don't" Pyrrha chokes up a bit, from the smoke "Don't risk your life." It's a dumb thing to say, Ruby's already obviously risking her life. She still hopes that Ruby gets the message and just focuses on surviving.

Pulling her weapons back to her, Pyrrha runs out of the forest. She thought that Cinder might try to stop her, but the Maiden doesn't make a single move to do so, looking like all her attention is on Ruby. Pyrrha prays that she hasn't condemned another partner to a grisly fate as she runs through the blaze all around them.

Her eyes are still stinging from the smoke when she bursts out of the foliage to see the battle going on around her. Her friends are fighting valiantly against the bandits and doing… not badly, but not as well as she would have thought. There must be a few tougher enemies out there, like Mercury, who she notes is just outside the forest a few meters to her side.

"Well, look who the Rose dragged out of the fire. A pity she'll-" His words are cut off by Pyrrha's spear thrown towards him. He ducks out of the way and mutters "Hmph, fine. I can't say I haven't been looking forward to a rematch either. I won't have to throw the match like last time!" He shouts out the last part as he charges at her, jumping and kicking. She blocks his leg with Milo, and he deftly jumps over Akouo as it returns to her.

The crimson haired huntress is tired and low on Aura, though she notices he isn't doing perfectly either. Ruby must have landed a few shots on him before helping her.

They fight, neither side gaining the advantage, until Ruby flies across the battlefield from the forest behind Pyrrha. The sight catches Mercury's eye for a second, which Pyrrha capitalizes on by jabbing Milo into his chin. Pyrrha's distantly worried about Ruby, but she doesn't let herself get distracted, knowing how skilled a fighter she's facing.

She expects further aggression from Mercury, but the silver haired man has switched to a different stance. Very defensive and… able to keep her from leaving. Pyrrha whips around to see Ruby at the edge of camp, looking around, but not quite seeing things. Emerald, lurking around the edges is obviously to blame, but Cinder is the real threat, revealing her previously sleeved arm. It's a horrifying Grimm-black arm, with a clawed hand. Pyrrha can't help but be disgusted and shocked by it. She knew how nasty Cinder was, but to go that far, to fuse something soulless and vile to oneself…

Pyrrha tries to run forward to stop the nightmarish limb stretching towards her partner, but Mercury cuts her off with an air shot that sends her skidding across the ground to dodge. Getting up again she looks and sees that somehow a beam has blocked the arm's attack on Ruby, and the silver-eyed huntress is seeing things clearly. Following her gaze, Pyrrha sees the cause of it: Qrow Branwen, fighting his way out of the forest.

The cavalry arrives behind him, still fighting off some of their own foes, but Pyrrha feels her heart soar as she sees all of them alive and well. It feels like the tide of battle has turned back in her favour, joined together again. Pyrrha gives an unkind grin to Mercury as he tries to take advantage of the distraction and attack her while off guard, smoothly swiveling to face him, his high kick caught on Akouo, sending a shock coursing through his body. She follows it up with a few sword slashes that further put him on the back foot. Before she can end him with a well placed stab though, a burst of fire separates them.

Pyrrha half turns to face the obvious culprit, Cinder, walking towards them, while keeping one eye on Mercury. The Maiden's walk is calm, but her face is seething, barely a step away from a rictus of anger. "Mercury. Go help Emerald deal with Ruby's sister and the heiress, I'll finish things here." Mercury gulps at his boss' tone and nods, dashing across the battlefield. Pyrrha itches to finish him off (his running away left so many openings!) but she knows that Cinder would stop any attempts.

She sneers at Pyrrha as she steps closer "Do you really think you've changed anything? Just because Watts' contraption failed, you'll still all die, just all together now." The anger melts away from her face and voice as she gazes at the huntress sadistically. "I'll pay Ruby back by turning you to ash before her eyes. Then I'll do the same to her."

Pyrrha doesn't bother with a retort, merely striking at the woman. She counters with a sword made of glass and a burst of fire that Pyrrha just manages to block with Milo. She rushes back in with every move she can think of, but Cinder's now dual glass swords block her at every turn. It's not that Cinder's that skilled (well, she is, but more in her Dust and Aura moves than this kind of fighting), it's that Pyrrha's slowing down. The Fall Maiden also isn't caught off guard this time by any explosions of strength that Pyrrha can call upon. She's calling upon every last bit of power her body can provide, determined with all her soul that she can't lose her, but her body isn't able to do enough. Every thing she has is barely enough to survive, even for the moment.

"Where has that might gone, oh scion of Mistral?" Cinder mockingly asks her as she slips past a slightly off angle sword slash and kicks the side of Pyrrha's leg, causing it to buckle. The 'feeling all too vincible Girl' blocks a scimitar strike and just manages to hop out of the way from Cinder letting the blade shatter and reform under Akouo and turn the move into a stab. The quick backstep lands badly for her leg, causing Pyrrha to wince in pain.

Pyrrha gives up any hope of offense, just trying to last, and while the battle seems to be turning against the bandits, Cinder's allies are holding their own. The Mistralian huntress isn't likely to receive any help soon, but at least everyone else is- Pyrrha catches a glimpse behind Cinder of Ruby being thoroughly smacked around by Raven, the bandit leader menacing over her partner.

"HA!" Pyrrha shouts while thrusting her spear forward, hoping to make an opening to save Ruby somehow. Cinder sees through her ploy easily, catching the spear wrenching it to the side and kicking Pyrrha in the abdomen. Pyrrha crashes into the ground, the breath knocked out of her. She reaches out trying to pull Milo back to her and sees two molten pieces of metal land in the ground beside her.

"Do you see now how worthless it all was? Beacon's barely holding on, and we'll go back to finish it off after we've brought ruin to your homeland. You and the rest of Ozpin's little foot soldiers won't prevail."

Pyrrha looks up at Cinder, then past her to Nora running towards her, Ren holding the other bandits off of her. "Nor will we surrender" Pyrrha replies as she pulls an unconscious bandit's sword to her free hand. Even if one of them, even if all of them fall, Pyrrha's going to make sure it means something. To inspire future generations. To not again inflict the gut-wrenching pain that Nora and Ren felt when they saw her give up against the Nuckelavee last time. She stands up and looks Cinder straight in her good eye. It's filled with hatred and incomprehension, as if she simply can't understand what type of character it would take to place her cause ahead of her own life.

The Maiden shakes her head, and Pyrrha can't help but count that as a minor win, as if in their little impromptu staredown it mattered that Cinder looked away first. What did count as a minor win was that she ended up looking slightly to the left, not to the right where Nora was bounding behind her. Cinder stiffened, but Pyrrha threw her shield at her nemesis. Cinder dodged out of the way easily, turning so she could face Pyrrha and the new threat she had sensed behind her. Akouo hit Nora, Pyrrha using Polarity to reduce the impact and trigger the electricity from her shield.

Cinder's hand was raised with flames gathering in it, but she turned almost completely away from Pyrrha to blast Nora. Cinder had seen the Vytal matches, she knew exactly what Nora's semblance was. The usually bubbly girl took the blast of flames and was pushed back, her aura flashing, but not breaking quite yet. Nora glared up at Cinder, energy surging through her when Pyrrha called out, "Wait, go back!" Nora paused, but even she realized what would happen if she charged in. Her Semblance would give her a boost to her strength, but Cinder was focused on her. The Fall Maiden would cut her down before she even got the chance to use her prodigious strength. Still, Nora looked conflicted, so Pyrrha added "You promised!"

Nora mouth twisted bitterly, but she gave a quick nod of her head, and leapt away. Cinder turned back to face Pyrrha while the Mistralian huntress pulled her shield back to her. A quick glance around the battlefield showed things much the same as before, though Vernal was drifting closer towards Pyrrha's duel with Cinder and Ruby was well out of reach now. It looked like she and Raven had gone through a tent and were fighting over there.

Cinder loosed a few more arrows at Pyrrha, keeping her at bay. This would have been fine with Pyrrha, if not for the bursts of fire that Cinder also sent her way. Pyrrha let go of her aura, letting the flames singe her as she dodged around, knowing that she'd need to reserve it for the shots that actually mattered, even if it meant letting herself get burnt a bit. Cinder started gathering her flames into a powerful blast, only to immediately channel it into an untargeted burst, designed to send her away from the giant cage that smashed towards her. A thunderous boom followed quickly behind it and Pyrrha saw Nora standing with Magnhild at the far end of the camp where the cage that held Weiss had once been; it looked like Nora had found a good use for her semblance enhanced strength after all. Cinder narrowly dodged the cage with her flight, only to be hit with it as Pyrrha's Polarity redirected it into her (though it did lose some speed doing so).

The beaten up cage smashed into her and crashed into the ground, denting even more on impact. The rest of the battlefield was frozen for a moment at the crazy maneuver that had taken place. Then Cinder exploded, swathes of fire pouring out from her violently. The cage was blasted apart with an awful sound, the metal flying off like shrapnel, one of the bars flying straight towards Pyrrha's head. No time to think or reach for her Semblance, Pyrrha's honed instincts saved her, causing her to twitch her head to the side so the bar only grazed her cheek. Cinder rose up in the air, a stream of fire reaching down to the ground as she menaced towards Pyrrha.

"Did you think your petty tricks would stop me? That a bit of teamwork could overcome me? I am Cinder Fall, I rose from nothing and brought Vale to it's knees!" Cinder dropped down, the flames bursting outwards as she landed. Pyrrha readied herself, gathering her aura, bracing herself on her good foot, holding her shield out in front of her with her sword braced behind it to resist better. She was utterly blown away by the blast, her weapons knocked out of her hands as she fell and was knocked to the ground. Distantly, Pyrrha could see Ruby, having emerged from the tents behind the camp, looking dirtier and mire tired than before, but uninjured.

Vernal, having disengaged from the other group, moved in on her prone form only to be stopped by Cinder. "**No**. She's mine." Vernal's eyes narrowed briefly, but she held her hands up and stopped walking towards Pyrrha. The wind picked up around them, sending Pyrrha's weapons flying out of her reach as a mini hurricane surrounded them. Ruby tried to get close but was buffeted back by the winds. "You keep chasing after a destiny – the destiny I've already claimed." Cinder walked forward and placed her heel on Pyrrha's abdomen, forcing her down. "But you can rest easy now. I'll send you off to see your little boyfriend." Cinder raised a sword of glass above Pyrrha, and it was like the world froze for a moment around her.

The Mistralian champion could struggle, but she knew it would be for naught. Cinder had her beaten. Perhaps, if the blow wasn't instantly fatal, Pyrrha could gather what remained of her Aura and attempt to pierce Cinder with Milo when her guard was down. She wasn't giving up, she had promised her friends, but… this was the end. She turned her head, not looking away because she was afraid (though she was afraid, so afraid of everything she would lose now that she had finally realized what she still had), but to look at Ruby outside the wall of wind separating them. Her voice wouldn't reach, so she just mouthed the words 'I'm sorry' to Ruby.

Ruby threw her head back and silver light erupted from her eyes, covering the entire camp, the wind stopping as Cinder fell to the side, on her knees and screaming in agony. Her Grimm arm disintegrating away to nothingness as her human arm reached up and clawed helplessly at her face, as if she could tear out the inner evil that now brought her anguish like she had brought to so many others. Pyrrha thought she could make out silver wings of condensed light that had erupted from her eyes before they faded away and Ruby shakily sunk to her knees, looking exhausted. Pyrrha's heart went out to the younger huntress who saved her, but her mind focused on Cinder, kneeling helplessly before her. She called Milo to her hands as she rose up…

…Only to be interrupted by Vernal launching herself forward, planting her wrist blades into Cinder's body. "Surprise"

A/N: Wow, it's been a while hasn't it? Sorry about that, life, sickness, and other stuff brought me to a halt on my story progress. Unfortunately, that'll be happening again soon as I plan on devoting my writing efforts in November to NaNoWriMo. To deal with that, my hope is to increase the pace of releasing chapters so I can get everything with 'Volume 5' wrapped up before the end of October. After that, not to give too much away, but I predict the story will diverge a fair bit away from canon. I also plan on taking a bit of a hiatus after that point. Both because of NaNoWriMo and because of other projects and things taking up my time. Additionally that break should help me get my plans in order for how I expect things to roll out after that. I have some general outlines for the story past that point, but there's still a lot of details I have to work out. Thank you all for your patience and I hope you've enjoyed my story thus far. If you have any questions, comments, or reviews, please post them.


	27. Chapter 27 - Murder

Chapter 27 – Murder

Ruby desperately scrambles to her feet, turning into two bursts of petals as she runs away from the merciless bandit leader. Even with her speed boost, Ruby finds herself knocked aside almost instantly after reforming. Coughing a bit, Ruby gets up again, keeping her guard up as she does so. Not that it would do much good, she's sure that if Raven wanted to she could have beaten her up again, this (and being hit with the blunt of her blade on that last hit) make it pretty clear that Raven is just toying with her, kicking her about further across the camp.

'Calm down. Evaluate yourself and your enemy. When one strategy doesn't work, look for different option.' Pyrrha's words ring out in Ruby's head and she narrows her silver eyes at Raven (for some reason that causes the woman to tense up, ever so slightly). "Why are you doing this? Why do you get enjoyment out of hurting people?"

Ruby hears the ex-huntress exhale sharply from behind her mask as Ruby discrettly presses a button on her bracer. "I don't _like_ hurting people, I do it because I hav-" Raven's words are cut off by herself as something alerts her to the scythe Ruby called back hurtling on a direct path towards Raven's back. It could be Aura, or great hearing, or even just a 'combat sense', intuition honed over years of battle, but whatever it is Ruby can't tell. Raven transforms into a bird instantly, the scythe harmlessly whirling past where her back had been and into the red-cloaked warrior's hands.

Raven's back in her regular form in an instant, her odachi striking out. Raven's fast, and skilled, but Ruby manages to deflect the strikes with her scythe, hold the older woman off for a moment. Ruby moves in, hoping to catch Raven off guard with unarmed strikes to set up a reap from behind, but it doesn't work. Raven tosses the blade over to her other hand and deftly twists it up, catching against the scythe leveraged behind her while blocking Ruby's elbows with her armguards. Raven sweeps her front foot with her own, the minor hit more shuffling her foot a couple inches to the side than fully throwing her. Since Ruby had been just about to kick with her back leg though, it sends her stumbling off balance. Raven drops her sword, letting Mechanical Rose come back to her, throwing her further off balance. Ruby tries not to fall down again, an effort assisted by Raven, pulling her up by the scythe shaft and then launching a punch into Ruby's stomach with her free hand the moment the small girl's feet just lift off the ground.

Ruby crashes into, and through the largest tent in the encampment. As she breaks through the tent, she notices the table that Yang destroyed hen she talked to her mother. She doesn't have much time to focus on that as Raven suddenly appears in front of her, rocketing in even faster, her Odachi swinging at Ruby in a reverse grip. While still flying backwards Ruby hits the trigger, the shot spinning Mechanical Rose up to block it. It bounces off and Ruby crashes out the other end of the tent, Raven fast behind her. The scarlet clad huntress skids off the ground for a few feet before Raven stomps down on Mechanical Rose, jerking her to a halt. Raven's standing over her, but the bandit's blade is held by her side, not pointing towards the helpless huntress beneath her.

"You're a better fighter than her, you know?" At Ruby's pained and bewildered face she clarifies "You mother, that is. You're more skilled than she was." The clarification does actually help a bit, but it does nothing to change the base confusion of why Raven is suddenly talking to her cordially and not as if they were enemies.

"You mean, I'm" Ruby coughs out a bit sand that had gotten in her mouth in the tumble. "I'm a better fighter than my mom was during my age?" Ruby asks, while slowly letting go of her weapon, ready to run when she gets the chance (she thinks that feeling her legs again would be nice when she gets to that point but hopes it isn't necessary). Raven notices the motion, her head snapping down, eliciting a small "Eeep!" From the young girl and causes her to freeze. Raven pauses for a moment as well before nodding and taking her foot off of Mechanical Rose.

She sighs and says "Yes, that's true too, but I mean even at her height. Well, at least how skilled she was at our graduation, I admit I wasn't there for Summer's passing or the last few years of her life." There's something like regret and melancholy in her voice that nearly has Ruby seeing red, ready to jump and start yelling at her, Mechanical Rose forgotten. To ask how Raven can be sad when _she's_ the one that chose to leave, to hurt Yang and Dad, and Summer and her own brother… but they aren't having a family chat, this is not a pleasant conversation, and while Raven might be sparing her for the moment, that odachi in her hands still gleams wickedly. Ruby settles for her worst glare possible rather than any sudden movements and a tirade.

Raven flinches slightly at the young girl's stare before suddenly laughing. "It's been a while since I've seen that look, it's just as piercing as I remember. But that's in the past, and you aren't quite your mother, however much you look like her. She wouldn't have attempted to stab me in the back like you did." Ruby opens her mouth to speak, but Raven doesn't give her the chance "I approve, Summer could have stood to be a little more pragmatic." The bandit leader steps to the side, well out of the path of the scythe should the crimson hooded huntress call it back to herself, and she extends her hand down to the girl.

Ruby doesn't take it, asking "What do you want?" In a tone so low it almost comes out as a growl. Raven just roughly grabs her arm and pulls Ruby up and close to her. The young huntress tries to think of a move, a counterstrike that can get her away and past the more experienced woman. Raven's masked face moves in beside Ruby's head, the words Raven whispers in her ears pausing Ruby's thoughts on how to try and counterstrike.

"Use your Silver Eyes to defeat Cinder." What? How is she supposed to do that? Why would Raven say that? The young huntress almost thought she imagined the words or someone else said them, but everyone else is too far away and they feel too odd to be imagined. Ruby searches for a sign, another message, but Raven's mask conceals whatever intentions or reasons or anything she might have. It's completely blank and creepy surface also leaves Ruby without any hint of Raven tossing her to the side, landing just by the few unpacked tents in the back, fairly close to the duel raging between Pyrrha and Cinder.

Ruby lands on her feet and pulls Mechanical Rose back to her, looking back briefly at Raven, to see if this is some sort of trick, but the ex-huntress simply stands there impassively, gesturing for Ruby to go ahead with her free hand. Ruby turns, hoping that maybe there is a shred of goodness within Raven, one that will let her save her partner. Then a cage flies out of nowhere to hit Cinder.

Before Ruby can cheer or go out to check on Pyrrha a massive explosion drives her back. Heat is pouring off of Cinder in droves, causing Ruby to hold her arms in front of her face to shield herself. "Are you just going to stand there? Or will you use your eyes and save her?" Raven demands from behind her.

Half turning to answer her, while keeping an eye on Cinder advancing towards her partner she says "But I don't know how!"

"You don't know- and I'm supposed to know how your eyes work better than you do?" The masked woman retorts incredulously. "Go in there and save her. Or don't and watch your friend die." Raven says, sheathing her blade and crossing her arms.

Ruby turns away from the useless bandit and toward Cinder, now almost ontop of her partner. She might not know how to use her Silver Eyes yet, but if she can just use Mechanical Rose- her charge is stopped by a vortex of wind she can't get through. She sees Pyrrha trapped underneath Cinder's boot. The Fall Maiden is talking to her, saying something Ruby can't hear, but she sees Pyrrha turn to face her, mouthing out 'I'm sorry.' This can't be happening, she can't lose Pyrrha too. She has to protect Pyrrha, some way, somehow. Cinder's sword is raised above her…

no

No.

**NO!**

Ruby's mind is ablaze with silver light and she welcomes it, letting it fill her up and explode out of her. When the light fades and she can look around again, she sees that Vernal is standing over Cinder with her blades in her. Pyrrha's behind her, Akouo back in her hands. Vernal pulls the trigger on her guns… only for nothing to happen. She rolls out of the way from Pyrrha's strike, letting the blow go clean through Cinder's neck. Her head falls off and rolls to the ground at the same time that her body drops down. Ruby can see an expression of pain with just a hint of shock on her face as the head finishes it's roll facing her. There's a pause of shock for two seconds then everyone starts reacting.

Dr. Watts is raising his voice, calling out for a retreat, but those words are hard to hear over the intense screaming of Emerald, who had fallen belly first on the ground. A distorted, deathly pale figure, a giant woman rises up from the center of the camp. Salem's twisted form screams- and then vanishes along with Emerald and everyone can see Raven standing nearby where Emerald was, looking a little shaky with a rapidly disappearing portal beside her. "Enough of that now" she mutters.

Over on the other side, Ruby hears Vernal "-uuuuck." Turning around she sees the most important sight. Pyrrha, standing tall, a fiery anima coming out from her eyes, showing everyone who the next Fall Maiden is.

A/N: So that will hopefully explain a bit of what's going on, though I'm sure it'll raise some other questions too. I think I'll be able to answer them all in the coming chapters, but I might do a Q&A after this arc is done, in case anything is still unclear by the end of it. If there was anything you liked, didn't like, or thought was interesting, be sure to leave a review.


	28. Chapter 28 - Unkindness

Chapter 28: Unkindness

Pyrrha saw Vernal about to shoot Cinder and realized in that instant what she was going to do. Reaching out with her polarity she stopped the gun from firing then lunged in with her sword swinging towards the two of them. Vernal rolled out of the way Dodge into the side while cinder still stunned her head chopped off by Milo.

Emerald's hallucination took the rest of the camp by storm while Pyrrha and Vernal were still stunned over what happened. Pyrrha heard for Vernal say something distantly, but couldn't make out what it was, she was too distracted by the power now coursing through her. She had no idea what she had expected it feel like, this magic that was had now passed on to her she expected to feel strong (and she did she feel it, so much power coursing into her) she didn't expect you to actually feel like fall like the tree leaves as they came down the chill of the wind on a cool day, but not the bitter harshness of winter. It felt like all of that and more.

She turned to Vernal drawing on the new power within her soul and felt but couldn't quite see the anima flaring out from her eyes. Vernal took one look at her, sighed, and turned tail, running two steps before flying into the sky. Pyrrha didn't know why Vernal had turned on Cinder (not that there weren't plenty of reasons to want that witch dead), but she knew that she still had a mission to accomplish. Vernal was the Spring Maiden, so they needed to take her back to Haven so they could get the Relic. Plus, she was bandit scum, so Pyrrha felt no compunction taking her down hard if necessary.

Creating bursts of flames in her hands, Pyrrha leapt up, trying to fly through the sky like how saw Cinder do it. The flames did lift her into the air, albeit in a very uncontrolled manner. She rocketed over the forest, overshooting Vernal, before turning around to face her. She had to stop her flames as Vernal's laser shots came towards her and she brought Akouo up to defend herself. It sent her careening through the air as she struggled to twists around and right herself, boosting herself with fire once more (now more even in each hand and in how fast she was going, but still very tumultuous).

Pyrrha steadied herself and flew around the shots that Vernal sent her way. Pyrrha flew towards her, but even though she was faster, Vernal had her outclassed in the air by miles in maneuverability. She slid around the attack and contemptuously kicked the Mistrallian champion in the side on her way by, which threw her off course.

Her scarlet hair whipped around in the wind as she tumbled through the sky and inbetween tree branches before righting her course. The trees are alighted by her fire as she passes by, but Pyrrha doesn't have the energy or mental focus to worry about forest fires, her mind is only focused on beating Vernal.

Lifting herself up above the treelines again, Pyrrha rises above Vernal, before dropping her flight and pulling out her sword and shield. Guarding against the shots Vernal sent her way, Pyrrha shifted Milo into spear form, jabbing out with it. The strike missed Vernal but Pyrrha was able to hook her spear through one of her crescent blades and pull herself forward to bash the older girl with Akouo. She flipped herself around, over Vernal and threw her shield at the bandit. It smacked against Vernal's head and her Aura flashed, the blow keeping her in place long enough for Pyrrha to shoot with Milo and launch herself forward, the haft of her spear swinging downwards. She wasn't dazed long enough to be caught off guard by the attack, so Vernal raised her blades to catch it. Pyrrha might not be as good as Ruby at the aerial moves, nor have the recoil to pull of such extreme stunts, but she can manage something in this close a range to manage simple maneuvers. It also leaves her one hand free, something Pyrrha takes advantage of, gathering flames in left hand and pointing her palm towards Vernal.

Vernal looks frightened for a split second before smirking. Pyrrha readies herself for anywhere she could fly, but doesn't manage to react fast enough when Vernal flies straight down in response to Pyrrha loosing her stream of flame at her. Vernal swoops back up, her blades, cutting into Pyrrha's back as gravity takes a hold of her, breaking her Aura and causing her to drop Milo down to the forest bellow. She rockets herself up with flame while reaching out, trying to call her weapons back to her… but nothing happens. She's out of Aura, which means she's out of Semblance. Desperately she tries to use her magic to fuel her Aura, but it fails. She can feel it in her soul, along with her Semblance, but she can't make the two interact.

Vernal's laughter breaks her out of her thoughts, and Pyrrha looks up and glares at those icy blue eyes. She's floating in the air without any seeming problem at all, as if the sky was a solid platform she could stand on, excepting the fact that her stance wasn't seeming like she relied on having a sturdy surface to stand on. "You really know nothing about this, huh? Cinder blabbed that you were originally chosen to be the next Fall Maiden, but it looks like your teachers didn't bother to teach you anything. Now that you've gotten it, your helpless as a newborn babe." Pyrrha doesn't have the energy to refute the words, nor the truth to back up any claims. She had rushed in, overconfident with her power, and now she was outclassed by the Spring Maiden. For some reason, Dr. Oobleck's voice unhelpfully chimed out in her mind about "Those who refuse to learn from history are doomed to repeat it."

She shook herself clear of pessimistic thoughts and tried to rack her mind for a strategy. Vernal's control was so good she didn't even seem to make any wind shift around her as she flew, and she could keep her anima concealed even while she flew. Pyrrha couldn't try to match her there; she could barely hold herself steady with flames as it was now, she was sure that if she tried to use air she'd fall (likely fatally given her Aura state) to the ground. Maybe she could try something else though…

Pyrrha launched herself towards the cocky bandit. "Oh? You're coming at me?" Pyrrha exploded flames around her (another trick from Cinder she was forced to borrow), hoping to catch her off guard, knowing at the very least it would make it tough for Vernal to slice her up with her blades. Vernal was still too fast, arcing away, over, then twisting around midair just above the corona of fire to aim the barrels of her twin circle blades at Pyrrha, who couldn't halt her charge quick enough to get out of the way. "Looks like I'll be getting that Fall Maiden mantle after all" Vernal quips. Just as she starts to squeeze the trigger, a green bolt flies out and hits her, knocking the shot wildly off course and sending Vernal tumbling through the sky. If the size and color of the blast weren't enough to tell Pyrrha who was firing their way, the fact that the next two shots nailed Vernal mid-aerial tumble (the last of which seemed to break Vernal's Aura) confirmed Ruby's identity as her saviour, once again.

Pyrrha descended down to the ground of the forest and picked up her weapons. Even having dismissed her own flames already, they felt hot to the touch, and Milo looked to be in terrible shape. Akouo wasn't great, but she had just recently taken her to be upgraded. Milo… well it was probably a miracle it had survived the last shift to spear state and it's fall from the sky. This battle had been hard on her armaments and she offered a quick prayer that they'd last her for long enough that they could do what they needed to do.

She marched through the forest cautiously, ready for any surprises. Rushing in wasn't any good, but Vernal was still needed, and her partner had at least weakened the bandit for her. The tide of the battle had shifted with Cinder's death, help would soon be on the way, she'd just have to keep Vernal from escaping for a bit.

She saw the cuts on a few big tree branches and realized she was on the right path. Vernal must have used her blades to slow her fall down. She caught sight of the girl in a large clearing. There was a bunch of weird boxy machines set up around the entire clearing, with wires connecting them, but a few of the machines looked burnt out. Vernal turned around to look at Pyrrha, before her cool blue eyes flickered upwards. Pyrrha tensed herself, but Vernal just shook her head, obviously remembering Ruby's shots. They stared each other off for a moment before Pyrrha spoke up. "Give up already, it's over. If you don't resist, you don't have to die."

Something in Vernal's eyes sparks at that and she lets out a small chuckle. "Heh, that's right, you don't want me to die, do you? You need your Spring Maiden to open that vault – it's why Cinder needed me and I bet you're here for the same reason." Pyrrha didn't speak up, but her grimace was answer enough for Vernal. "Fine then, I'll help you get your stupid Relic, but then you have to let me go."

Let her go? She was a bandit, a horrible thief whose attacks robbed people and invited the Grimm. Vernal had hurt people, and at the very least worked for a woman who had hurt several of her friends. Pyrrha spit in disgust at the idea and takes a step forward.

"If that's how you want to play it…" Vernal said, extending her arms out slightly, still holding onto her two blades. "We can see how much punishment two Maidens without Aura can take. But even if you win (and I doubt you'll win), I'll make sure you lose, because I promise you that I'll make you or any of your friends the exact last thing on my mind before I die."

The Mistrallian champion halts. She knows how much Boren and Denim were hurt by the Branwen tribe, how vile they are… but they need that Relic to fight Salem. So long as the rest of the bandits are taken out, it's not like Vernal will be able to easily reform the tribe, right? And if she dies here who knows how long it will take them to find the next Spring Maiden? Or even if they'll be able to find her before someone like Tyrian shows up and 'whisks her away', Salem turning another Maiden into an enemy…

"Well? Do we have a deal?" Vernal's voice cuts through her thoughts and Pyrrha (struggling to remain standing steady with everything going on, refusing to show an inch of weakness to her foe) takes a step backwards, pointing her finger at the bandit.

"I can't promise you that – it's not up to me." She tacks the last part on the end before Vernal can object. "But" she says, grinding the words out "I will intercede on your behalf and ask them to my utmost ability to let you leave unmolested once you give us the Relic." Pyrrha makes sure to stress those last words as much as possible. She might be willing to let Vernal leave this time, but that isn't giving her a free pass. If she- if any of them find her after this, they'll take her down. "Now drop. Your. Weapons." Vernal's smile is quickly hidden, but it unnerves her.

"Fine, fine. So long as you hold up your end of the bargain." Vernal slowly drops her arms and holsters her weapons.

"I said-"

"I'm not gonna be your prisoner forever. I'll go along with you and open your vault, but then I plan on flying away, and I'd like to keep my blades as an insurance policy" Vernal says, as if her Maiden powers didn't make her dangerous enough. Pyrrha bristled at the idea, however decided not to push it. Vernal didn't look like she would budge, but it didn't matter (not like a Maiden wasn't deadly enough without a weapon). As dangerous as everything had been, they'd won. Cinder was dead, the Branwen tribe was (probably) broken by now, and they'd got Vernal to go with them and open the vault.

They remained in that spot for a couple minutes before Qrow arrived. Well, Pyrrha did, remaining standing and vigilant. Vernal found a tree, sat down beside it and rested, apparently entirely content with their deal (did she think it would be that easy to barter for her release with Pyrrha's word, or did she just not care, knowing how she held the key to the Relic? Pyrrha didn't know, but she didn't like it either way). Eventually Qrow arrived, and Pyrrha explained the situation to him.

He grunted (hard to tell whether it was a 'good job', 'that's terrible', or 'I need a drink'… ok, probably not that hard to tell if it's the last one, but there's usually some other message mixed in with his grunts) and motioned for Vernal to come along. Pyrrha kept a close eye on her, but Vernal seemed content with everything, not drawing her weapons or making any sudden moves.

They gather back with the others at camp, and Pyrrha sees the results of the battle: They won, and decisively so. The bandits are all either sitting down, hands tied up with some rope taken from the tents, looking upset, but not willing to struggle. Others are still unconscious (or pretending to be) lying sprawled out on the ground. There's a pile of weapons gathered off to the side guarded by Nora and Ren (which, Pyrrha notes with some delight, includes Mercury's legs).

Under the heaviest watch are the older Atlesian man and Mercury. Pyrrha walks up to Ruby, only for the red hooded huntress to spot her and immediately rush over and give her a crushing hug. "Pyrrha, you're alright!"

"Ruby… ribs" Pyrrha wheezes out to the smaller girl, who loosens her grip but doesn't let go.

"I was foolish-" she tries to say as Ruby says at the same time "I was so worried-". They both cut off, pause for a second and just start laughing.

"Ugh, would two quit your lovefest over there, it's making me nauseous" Mercury remarks from where he's lying on the ground. They both turn and glare at him, and he just flips them the bird. They don't pay him any more mind, but his words do remind them of the fact that there are others around and things to do. Even as they let go of their embrace, Pyrrha keeps a light grip on one of Ruby's hands, to remind herself that _this is real, they won_.

Walking around they find Oscar along with Yang, Mary, and Umber. Mary's looking 'way too done with this shit', while Umber's just looking at her mystified, as if she's some mythical creature that will disappear if he looks away from her for a second. Pyrrha supposes that she might have some explaining to do about how killing someone let her eyes burst into flame and made her able to fly, but she decides that can be entirely future Pyrrha's problem.

"How did everything go? And where's Emerald and Raven?" Pyrrha asks.

"Uh, I think things went pretty well. After that first part at least" Oscar says, scratching the back of his head. That's right, Oscar was knocked out at first, Pyrrha remembers. It wasn't even an hour ago, but it feels like it's been ages.

"Don't worry about it. That ambush caught all of us off guard." Oscar blushes a bit in response to her words.

"I- thanks, but I'll try to do better in the future. I didn't get my aura up, so I was unconscious, but Qrow saved me. We landed in this field surrounded by these strange machines Dr. Watts set up." He points his thumb over at the Atlesian man, who bristles at the comment.

"Excuse me, boy, but those 'machines' are a work of genius! My Auric Inversion Field Generator is a marvel of modern science, more advanced than you could ever hope to comprehe-"

"Yeah, so this jerk turned on his big machine just as we landed and this big golden dome of light surrounded us. It was hard to move or speak or do anything, for the half second his machine worked anyways. It spluttered out and died and then it was just me, Qrow, and the gladiators in this clearing fighting against the Doctor, Raven, and the others."

"I think you know most of the story after that point" Qrow cuts into the conversation. "At least until you and Vernal flew off." Emerald made her monstrosity then pulled a vanishing act while Mercury and the others got beat up by us" Qrow says, pointing out to bandits lying around defeated around them with his flask before taking another swig. "Raven managed to escape and fly away. I don't how much threat she'll be without her people or her-" he pauses for a moment to consider the other people in hearing range that might not be in the loop "-second in command. Weiss and Denim are scouting out to find the ship these guys came from. Since our ride is wrecked we might as well use theirs to get back to Haven."

As if called on cue, Weiss and Denim exit the forest, which is looking very singed and Pyrrha bets there are still a few fires ongoing within it due to her battles. "We found it" Weiss breathes out, looking tired and a bit dirty from her battles, but happy. "It's just half a mile past the clearing where Watt's machines are set up."

"Alright then folks, let's pack it up, we're heading back to Haven. We've got some prisoners to escort back" Qrow says, jerking his head towards Mercury and Watts.

Denim speaks up "It's a very sleek ship design, I'm not sure all of us will be able to fit on there, let alone all of the bandits as well."

"Of course we can't take all the bandits, what did you expect would happen? We drove off Raven and we have her second, the bandits are finished for." There's some murmerings among the gladiators and Boren and Denim in particular are looking outraged. Ren doesn't look particularly easy with the thought of it either. Qrow picks up on these feelings and says "Look, either we let em go or finish them off. We don't have room on the ship and we shouldn't waste time." Boren's eyes look… murderous. Like he'd be more than willing to kill them where they stood. The others, particularly the tournament fighters who didn't know the whole truth didn't look particularly happy with this.

Ruby spoke up "How about some people stay here? If some of us stay and guard the bandits until the Rangers can come and arrange transport, we can take the more dangerous prisoners back to Mistral."

"Not a bad idea kiddo. Alright, who wants to be on bandit guard duty?" Qrow asks. Denim and Boren are keen to see the Branwen tribe punished, and Lavender and Avery decide to stick around too (Avery doesn't say anything, but he seems a little freaked out by everything weird going on with the hunters and magic). Mary wants to get back home to her family quickly and Umber sticks close to Pyrrha, so they go with them and the prisoners to Dr. Watts' custom Bullhead.

Dr. Watts has his hands tied tightly behind him and his feet are bound too, so he's forced to shuffle along with the group. Yang 'offers' to carry Mercury, swinging him by his arms and using his face to clear any branches or obstacles in her path. Vernal walks freely, never making a move for her weapon and looking as if she were going for a casual walk. Pyrrha doesn't know why she seems so carefree with everything that happened to her tribe. Whether it's just callousness to those she fought besides or something else, Pyrrha doesn't like it.

The forest definitely shows signs of damage from all the fighting that's gone on, and not all of it is fire. Branches cut off and whole trees blown away from the fighting Qrow and the others did before they got to the camp. The fire was the worst of it, though it looks like Weiss went around and froze over most of the problem areas, so Pyrrha didn't have to worry about the whole forest being burnt up.

When they pass by the clearing with the machines Dr. Watts made he moans "How could they have failed? They were only a prototype, but I was so sure of my designs. They even worked for a moment…" He starts muttering to himself and Qrow falls back to whisper to Ruby (and Pyrrha who's right beside her) "You could say he ran into a little bad luck there."

The custom Bullhead is a cool black and red design, with the engines a bit more angular and forming a closer 'v' shape with the main body than most regular ones. The passenger and pilot areas are smaller than usual as well. "Oh wow, it's got some great armor plating there, especially for such a lightweight vehicle" Ruby comments and Dr. Watts raises his head up in pride, though he still doesn't look pleased with the situation he's in.

Qrow settles into the pilot's seat and starts talking with Watts about everything on how to fly it as the others squeeze inside. They all manage to get in and close the doors as Qrow readies the machine to take off. "Buckle in as best you can folks, next stop, Haven." Yang tosses Mercury up in the luggage compartment much to his dissatisfaction.

There isn't room for Pyrrha to sit, but there's a strap attached to a bar nearby where Ruby's sitting, so she stands there as the Bullhead takes off, Umber situating himself right beside. There's a bit of idle chatter between the hunters throughout the trip, but it's not about anything too important. A lot of it is going over cool moments of the battle or other things, pointedly missing anything about magic or other craziness. Vernal has half a dozen eyes on her at all times, minimum, but it doesn't bother her. No one talks to her, besides Dr. Watts trying to taunt her with Raven leaving her and probing as to why Raven would betray Cinder then flee, but Vernal ignores him, barely even seeming to listen to the man.

As they're flying towards the school Ruby turns to her and says, "You did it." Pyrrha agrees, though she isn't quite sure it felt like she thought it would. "You're a true huntress now."

"Oh. Right, that. I guess, yes, yes I am" Pyrrha responds. It all feels so sudden, her new powers and Cinder's death, but amidst the confusion, there's a sense of confidence there. She'll learn how to use her powers in time, and they've struck a powerful blow against Salem. She- no, all of them, really are hunters now.

Still, back in the corners of her mind, the four-time champion of Mistral can't help but feel like there's something she's missing, something… important.

A/N: Ok, another chapter done! This was good, but I don't think I'll be able to get out another chapter out by tomorrow, though I still want to get this arc done by the end of October. For one, it's a lot bigger, and for two, it'll be the first perspective shift away from Ruby and Pyrrha's (excluding the first chapter). Thank you everyone for sticking around with my story and if there's any comments you have, feel free to post them.


	29. Chapter 29 - Conspiracy

Chapter 29: Conspiracy

Raven POV

So, Qrow was finally telling the kids a bit about what they're getting into, about the secrets Ozpin kept from them. Not everything, of course, nowhere near enough in her opinion – and it looks like that was an opinion shared by the great 'Mistralian champion' given her remarks and interruptions. She 'cawed' at her brother when he tried to feed him another line of manure on why he didn't tell them.

It didn't look like she needed to, given Pyrrha's outburst at him a few seconds later. Hmm, Pyrrha Nikos was indeed quite skilled from what she knew, a far cry better than those other tournament fools were (still no match for Salem or Ozpin and their minions, but exceedingly few were). Raven hopped a bit closer on the branch she was on to hear her dissection of her brother better. Yes, Pyrrha was quite… intriguing.

Raven ducked out of being questioned by Qrow after the fiery huntress walked out of camp and their niece followed her. Luckily, this was helped by the fact that he had two other children to deal with, and didn't quite want to raise even more questions that night by calling her out and having her spill things he was still 'playing close to the vest' as Ozpin might say.

When the Grimm attacked, drawn by their obvious negative emotions, she saw Qrow flick his eyes to the tree branches a few times. He lost track of her with night upon them and the Grimm distracting him, but he still thought that she might save him. How foolish. Didn't he say that they were enemies? Isn't he the one that left? He should be grateful that she didn't attack him while he was weak and distracted. Of course, there was someone that she might consider saving.

Flying over, she took in the sight of Pyrrha Nikos, raging against the Nuckelavee. She was glorious, a true genius. Even Raven could see few flaws with her form, save perhaps a few moments where the moves were a little too formal and not fluid enough, remnants of her tournament training. Her Semblance (quickly picked out as some kind of control over metal objects) seemed strong too. It was the anger, despair, and hatred she held in her heart that drew the bandit chief towards the former champion, much like it did the Grimm, albeit for different reasons.

How great could Pyrrha be in her camp? Vernal was exceptional, but Pyrrha could be her match, and besides her right-hand woman, there were few of any real talent. She shared a hatred for Ozpin and Salem and how they used people in their war, and Raven knew that there were others who had happily fled to the haven of her tribe (at least, for a time; Pyrrha seemed like she had greater mettle and will than the previous holder of the Spring Maiden's power, so that should be less of a concern). If her time at Beacon taught her anything, it taught Raven that people did love saviors.

Pyrrha was doing well against the Nuckelavee for someone of her experience. She'd landed some crippling blows on it, but it wouldn't quite be enough. If her brother wanted her to help them, then Raven supposed she could oblige. And if, after saving Pyrrha and uncovering some truths that Qrow hadn't yet revealed, the huntress decided to take Raven up on an offer to join her tribe…

The ex-huntress narrowed her avian eyes as the battle came to a conclusion. Pyrrha was defeated, soon to be killed, her teammates too far away to save her. Raven launched herself through the air, towards the beast holding Pyrrha in it's mouth, she'd transform and slice through i-

SILVER

.

.

.

Raven tries to blink away the silver light that seemed to invade her mind and sense and picks herself up, off the ground. What was that? The light came from Ruby, but even her Maiden powers couldn't do anything like that. Silver eyes… there were legends about their abilities and warriors that bore them, but Raven thought that was all they were. Maybe a few kernels of truth in there, Summer had always been a strong huntress, but to have anything beyond an intangible sense of leadership and innate drive to fight the Grimm- well the proof was here. Raven saw the Nuckelavee, petrified and smashed apart by Qrow as she shakily retreated into the darkness.

She had missed an opportunity here, but the ex-huntress had a bigger mystery to ponder. On Ruby's silver eyes and why she had been affected as well…

More unwelcome guests in her camp, and this time they didn't even have the potential to be wanted guests like her daughter had been. She couldn't easily turn them away either, Salem's minions would be dangerous enough on their own, but to actively go against the mistress of darkness would paint an uncomfortable target on her back.

She gives the signal to Vernal to make a show of it while she works her magic on the sky. The act is simple, giving her a moment to plot out her next move. If they're here anyways… it might be time to start striking out against the mother of Grimm. And if Salem's minions are after her, then Ozpin's cronies won't be far behind. Of course, there's nothing to say that she can't use them against each other.

Raven lets the conversation unfold, playing out her parts as she comes to an 'arrangement' with them (they seemed so shocked at first when she mentioned killing her brother that she almost thought they weren't going to take it). They also prove to be a font of information, on Leo and most importantly, on Ruby Rose.

Raven had spent some time wondering about Ruby and her Silver Eyes ever since that night in the forest, and while she had a few theories, she couldn't say for certain. Not until Dr. Watts revealed the hatred Salem's pretentious Fall Maiden had for her. It was the magic they held as Maiden's that hurt them when silver eyes were used. Why that and Grimm were affected, Raven couldn't say, but Cinder's hidden arm and face mask certainly indicated what those eyes could do to a Maiden when the powers were directed at them. Dangerous, but also useful.

Of course, nothing comes easily, and before she can even shake Cinder's hand, they're interrupted by a call from Leo. It looks like they'll be facing her brother and the students even sooner than anticipated, with more numbers than Salem's people had expected. After the call ends Raven speaks up to the group "If they're coming here I need to prepare my people for an attack. I assume you have some preparations of your own to make?"

Dr. Watts sighs and nods his head "I wanted no part in this, but it looks like there's little choice." He rubs his hand on his chin. "I do have some inventions on my ship I'd like to test out. We might as well give them a field test here; if they're successful we'll be able to greatly cut down on their numbers. I suppose I'll also have to use some of my contacts and actually arrange a flight for them to get here if we want Leo's cover intact, but at least it will give us an idea of how close they are getting when I track the ship."

"Get your people ready, but meet me in the forest in a few minutes – I have a delightful idea on how to use your Semblance to our advantage" Cinder says. Ominous, though not unexpected. Raven had fought against Salem once and they'd been sent here to bargain with her; it makes sense that they'd no of her Portals. Giving a short nod to the other Maiden, Raven turned around and walked to her command tent, motioning for Vernal to fall in line.

Once inside her right hand woman asked "Do you really intend to work with them?"

She gave a short, mirthless chuckle in response. "No, I have no intentions of serving Salem. We can't trust that immortal any more than we can trust Ozpin, but this will be an excellent opportunity to whittle down the forces of each before we strike."

Vernal's doubts assuaged she said, "Sounds good, what's the plan?" With a wicked grin on her face.

"I had originally just thought of striking when each side had lost a few numbers, not committing too heavily to the battle before that, but I just learned a vital piece of news. You remember what I told you about Ruby's eyes?"

"Yeah, you said they disoriented you, stunning you and petrifying an ancient Grimm. Wait, do you mean-?"

Raven's lips curved upwards "Yes, I think Cinder's desires and injuries stem from being hit with it full blast. It might not kill a Maiden, but it will leave them wide open for an attack. For someone else to take their mantle." She focused her stare directly at Vernal, who seemed flabbergasted.

"I- me? You want me as…?"

"I can think of no one better than you. You've instilled a sense of discipline in the men, always strive to improve yourself, and have served me loyally ever since I saved you." The bandit chief cupped a hand around Vernal's chin and gently lifted the younger woman's head up to look in her eyes. "Together we can do great things. We can fight off Salem and Ozpin, get the relic, and keep our people safe. But only if you're willing to take that leap. Can you do this?" In Vernal's eyes Raven saw surprise, and slight amounts of being overwhelmed with everything… but no indecision. Vernal was her woman and would follow her to ends of hell and back, she was sure.

"I can."

"Perfect. Wait for the opportunity to attack Cinder. If it doesn't look like Ruby's going to do it on her own, I'll nudge her along. Just make sure to be close when it happens, you'll only have one shot at this, and her eyes will necessarily impact myself as well (if hopefully far less so than her target). After that wait until I'm ready and we'll truly begin fighting both sides. Once they're eliminated we can go to Haven and get the Relic."

Raven motions for Vernal to go outside, waiting in the tent for a few minutes longer. Even if everything goes to plan (and Raven well knows that is never assured), then they'll still likely end up destroying the camp. It might have been a bit different from what the Mistralian elites would equate with as signs of 'wealth and power', but there were signs here and there. They had to be on the move as part of their lifestyle, but Raven had collected all manners of antiques and curiosities in her time as leader of the tribe. There were animal and Grimm kill trophies hung about (the Grimm ones were manufactured, but they were all made to the specifications of Grimm she had killed) the command tent. Not to mention the piles of gold, lien, and Dust hidden in caches around the camp. Banditry could be rewarding work, and the Branwen tribe was the most feared and effective group of bandits in all of Anima under her leadership.

She had to remind herself of this as she steeled herself to fight her brother. Summer's child. Her own daughter. To remind herself of everything they'd be tearing down. It grieved her, but they had made this choice. Qrow was once one of them, before Ozpin brainwashed him. Yang had her chance to join and she shot it down with gusto. Ruby… had not been offered the chance, but she had heard the girl speak – an offer to her would be meaningless, she was too much like Summer to ever consider joining the tribe. Now they came to murder her, just as she had plotted their deaths. They were enemies, of herself and her family, and she would end them as she had so many others that opposed the tribe.

Her thoughts centered, Raven donned her helmet and strode out of her tent. The tribe had been gathered quickly and impressively before her thanks to Vernal.

"Listen up!" The Branwen Bandit leader shouts out for the whole tribe to hear. "We face an enemy, the same enemy that always gets in our way – Huntsmen. They mean to wipe us out, to lock up or kill every last one us. But we aren't going to let that happen, now are we?"

The question is rhetorical, but her tribespeople raise up a small shout of "No!"

"No we aren't. We have warning this time, and some new allies on our sides, so we're gonna have nasty surprise prepared for them when they get here. They think they can stop us with a dozen odd hunters, but we're going to show them the might of the Branwen tribe!"

"Yeah!" Another cheer goes up this time, louder than before. Good, but she can still drive them further.

"There will be a couple of… familiar faces there, but make no mistake – they are all enemies. If they turn their hands on the tribe, if I strike them with my blades then you will know them as our enemies." The message is subtle, Cinder's green haired minion is still waiting on the edge of camp after all, but some of the more experienced member's eyes gleam in recognition of her true message. Yes, she's saying to strike against Yang and Qrow freely, but she's also letting them know to turn on Cinder's people when the time is right too.

"People look at us and think we're criminal scum, vagabonds, garbage. And maybe we are, but what does that make them when we crush their precious defences? We're the greatest tribe of bandits that this continent. We've plundered nearly every city on the continent and became feared throughout all of Mistral for it. If they think that they can send a few jumped up huntsmen after us and crush us then they have another thing coming. We'll beat them so badly no one will ever dare oppose us again!" So many lies, but her people eat it up. Their morale soars and the screaming, hollering, and cheering are so loud she almost wonders for a moment if Qrow will hear it on the airship heading towards them.

Her people bolstered she walks towards Emerald, Vernal trailing behind after giving a few last-minute instructions on where the tribespeople should go.

"C'mon, we need to go meet up with Cinder." They march into the forest for a bit until they come across the Fall Maiden, meditating on a stump. Mercury stands off to the side, looking a little bored and ready to get on with the fighting. She opens her eye when they near, a sadistic smile on her face.

"Now that your lot has been rallied we can begin." She takes out her scroll and pulls up a map on it, showing the airship approaching them. "You can create a portal to them and I'll send a blast through that will send them crashing out of the sky."

"Sounds like you have that covered. I'll go see if Dr. Watts needs any help with his stuff" Vernal says, excusing herself and giving a cover as to why she isn't providing any magical power to this attack. Not like it seems to matter, Cinder seems focused entirely on herself and her own 'genius'. Raven can see the hunger in that woman's eyes as Cinder watches Vernal leave. It's the closest thing the ex-huntress has seen to the Grimm on a human's face, only the ambition she has showing a hint of humanness.

Raven is strong, and she wants power too, but she knows better than to flaunt it at every chance she has. It's what's kept her alive all these years, what's given her this chance now. The Fall Maiden is little more than a mad animal, and she's glad not for the first time the freedom the mask gives her in glaring at the other woman.

They wait and when the Bullhead is just within range, Raven makes her portal. Cinder pours an impressive amount of magic into the blast, mixing it with Dust casting techniques as well to amplify the flames and create glass shrapnel. The bandit leader's opinion of the other woman goes up slightly – it does show impressive strength, but without the brains to realize where she's being led, the result will end the same.

Raven transforms and flies into the air to get a better view of where Ozpin's side is landing before diving back down. "The students are going to the camp, Qrow and some others are landing in the forest."

"Good, let's crush them. Your forces should keep them occupied long enough for us to arrive." Cinder says, causing to Raven to roll her eyes behind her mask, though it's not like she suspected much else – Cinder has had little regard for her tribe since she arrived.

"No" Raven says simply.

"What? Explain yourself?" Cinder demands.

"You and your groupies can deal with that, Qrow is landing over here. I'll deal with him." It's a good bit of reasoning with the motives Raven gave them, but it's not the truth. With how strong Cinder has shown herself to be, it's best to let her get whittled down by the hunters at the camp. If Raven came along it would tip things too far on their scale. She needs both of them weakened if her plan is to work. And if Ruby can't hold out for long enough for her to get back… then she probably wasn't strong enough to have been of use for the ex-huntress' plans.

"You don't get to-" Cinder's green haired thief yaps before her mistress quiets her with a raised hand.

"Fine, enjoy your revenge. I know that I'll enjoy mine." Cinder says, entirely unconcerned (or more accurately entirely focused on her own desires). "Emerald, go help out Watts with his toys, and after you're done cleaning things up there you can return to my side."

"Yes ma'am" Emerald says before turning to sneer at Raven. "Let's just get going. The faster we can kill your brother the faster we can move on." They split up, Cinder and Mercury moving towards the camp while Emerald leads Raven deeper into the forest.

She arrives at a clearing where he's set up a bunch of machines in a ring around it. They range in sizes and heights, a few almost as tall as she is, some upright and skinny like poles while others lie flat on the ground almost like small parcels. She notes that Vernal is very specifically not standing inside it and makes sure to give it a berth. "Ah, you're here. It looks like you'll be getting your chance at fratricide soon, not that we need such numbers to deal with them. If my calculations are correct (and they are), then half of their members will be landing here. With one flick of a switch my Aura Inversion Field generator will leave them helpless."

Raven has her doubts about the mad scientists invention but finds them washed away when the 8 fighters land in the center (one of them an unconscious boy even younger than Ruby – why would they bring someone like him here?). Qrow is glaring at her but doesn't even manage to get halfways into his first accusatory words when Watts flicks the switch he's holding. Qrows reflexes are fast, but even he can't manage to get out the clearing as the machines turn on and create a dome of golden light around them. He stops at the edge, unable to move, along with everyone else in the dome. Their Auras are active but… wrong, like they're fighting against the people they're meant to protect. To turn a soul on the body it's connected too, it disturbs even Raven.

She considers how she can turn things against Dr. Watts, but she needn't have bothered – the machines splutter out after a second and a few of them burst into flames, the golden light winking out of existence. It could just be a failure with the prototype, but the bandit chief was more inclined to blame her brother. There was a good reason why he was on Salem's hit list, and the difficulty in dealing with his Semblance was definitely part of it.

Of course, now that the trap was dealt with, she had to deal with eight fighters (the kid appeared to have recovered/been woken up by the machine), bursting out to attack the four of them with a vengeance. Dr. Watts was wailing something about 'how could my machine have failed?' but at least he had the sense to do so as he fought, pulling out a pair of fancy Atlesian guns and firing at them. Vernal countered multiple gladiators, trying to disarm them and keep them off balance, while Emerald fired with her revolver sickles from the sides. Raven herself had to deal with the full force of her brother coming at her.

She held even with Qrow's assault, matching him blow for blow, but unable to get past his defence. They had both trained for many years, pushing themselves to be the best they could. It was good to see that her brother had not managed to surpass her in the decades they had been apart. She didn't think she had, but there was always that niggling doubt in the back of her mind, and from the look in his eyes, he felt the same: What if they're better than me? Have I fallen behind my rival (and they had been set up as rivals from birth, as much as they were brother and sister as well). Raven distantly mused that this feeling must be the same for all skilled warriors meeting each other again on the field of battle. And with that knowledge came a smile, for she had a trick up her sleeves that would crush any he could bring to bear. If she could match his skill with her own, then she'd have no problem defeating him with her Maiden powers. But all things in good time.

He spun his blade around to sweep past her guard and she sidestepped looking to catch his flank. He jerked his blade back to block. With his blade stuck she let her own blade loose from her hilt and stepped in, preparing to draw another blade from her sheath and cut him up. Her plans faced a slight change when a heavily armored kid jumped at her with a bastard sword in two hands, his shield still sheathed on his back (foolish, he obviously was trained to use his shield in his off hand and was trying to trade protection for strength – she'd eviscerate him if Qrow wasn't waiting to take advantage of it). Blocking the blow she danced through the blades surrounding her. Qrow had ceded an opening to let Raven get surrounded. As a net descended on her she shifted into her Raven form, appearing near her feet and flying out from under it, weaving between legs to rejoin her allies, in a fighting retreat.

They held out well and were more skilled than their foes, save Qrow who was only matched by Raven. However, outnumbered by over 2 to 1 odds, they were scrambling to rejoin the camp. The battle would shift and flow, Raven's side unable to gain a real advantage, but the gladiators could not cut off their retreat either. One spectacular instance of Qrow's semblance had Emerald tripping on a root as a stray shot ricocheted into a tree branch that snapped just so as to hit Vernal in the face and knock her down. Raven called a quick bit of magic to create a sudden lightning strike in between the groups to give them pause, hoping that Qrow wouldn't have the right angle to see that it wasn't the downed Vernal that conjured it.

Pulling the others up and continuing backwards, Raven was beset by four of the gladiators. The fashion reject Morningstar girl blasted everything wildly around them as her weapon missed the bandit leader. The fire missed her entirely, the gravity pulses were avoided, but the ice nearly caught her arm, so she shifted again to avoid it, flying around the rage filled swing of the armored man (what did she ever do to him to make him so frustrated with her? Whatever it was, it made his skills sloppy at least), only to be forced to revert back and block a katana slash with her odachi. The one-armed man seemed familiar for some reason, and his skills were good enough to catch her mid flight, not an easy feat. But they weren't good enough to deal with her counter. The ex-huntress grabbed the shield the armored man had drawn before he could bash her with it (big men like him always seemed surprised by the strength a refined Aura could bring), kicking her right leg through his poor stance as she shifted the overhand block to let the katana slide into the space she once occupied, flipping the blade to- counter a flurry of spear thrusts from the fourth fighter rather than eliminate the one armed man. The boy had skill slightly beyond his peers and he kept up a keen footwork to drive her back towards the Morningstar chick.

In a flurry of motion, Raven fired her yellow Dust crystal blade towards the girl's wrist spinning the Dust filled weapon around and drew a red blade from her sheath. Deflecting the bastard sword to cut off the katana wielder, she grabbed the spear as it was thrust towards her. The boy expected a simple move, but experience left her knowing that he would easily counter her trying to jerk him towards her with his spear, so she simply flicked it upward. The boy repositioned, only to be hit by her previous Dust blade, sent flying through the air towards him after the wild girl's wrist was hit and the sympathetic pain from her Aura caused a twitch in her swing to hit the blade spinning through the air towards him. She put her new blade back and snatched the yellow one back, reaffirming it to the hilt, though the move cost her a glancing slash on her arm.

The two swordsmen attempted a pincer movement, giving her no room to breath. None of them was close to her skill, nor did they have any great team tactics beyond the basics, but they were all capable fighters, and fighting all of them at once was beginning to be a hassle, especially when her blade broke and she barely managed to dodge her head from a slash before she drew a new one, breathing in harshly from the exertions. On the bright side, she remembered the katana man. Not his name, but how Raven had cut off his arm over a year ago and tormented him intermittently to get people to back off. That didn't seem to have worked, as last she saw him, he was a broken shell of a man. She almost hadn't recognized him due to how invigorated he seemed now, so utterly focused on their fight. She'd even swear he'd somehow gotten better at fighting since he lost his arm – he might last fifteen seconds in a duel with her now, rather than ten. Of course, this wasn't a duel, so he was still alive with his friends helping him attack her.

"Ah, I remember you now. You're the foolish man who tried to play hero and lost an arm for it. I was sparing you your life, and for quite a reasonable cost of one limb, and yet here you are, eager to throw it away again." His eyes flash, enraged and he pauses to speak, big mistake. She drives the air out of his gut with an elbow, catching the bastard sword his friend sends her way and parrying it to the side. She kicks at him, the strike blocked by his shield, which she uses to spring herself upwards before kicking off of his face- and getting her Aura chipped away at by a jab from the spear user. It just grazed Raven's foot, but it's still insulting.

The bandit leader retreats, rather than face them once more, watching as Emerald and Dr. Watts give up their attack on Qrow and run back as well. Vernal stops plinking away at her fighters and joins them. The young boy bursts out from a bush towards Raven as she attempts to flee, cane drawn. Ozpin's cane ready to strike her. The ex-huntress twitches her head to the side and the blow misses her, much to her amazement. She follows up with an uppercut that sends him into the air, slashing him with her sword before he left her range.

Raven forces herself to calm down as she continues her run. She was prepared for it, she had to be, to fight against an immortal. It was still unsettling to see him in the body of a young boy. Terrifying to realize he was bringing her full might against her, that even if this assault failed, he'd bring more resources to bear against her. That even killing him wouldn't stop it. Which is why she needed that Relic and the Fall Maiden's power. With those, perhaps she really could stand up to those two gods warring over Remnant.

Raven deflects a few attacks sent her way as she breaks out of the forest with the others, Ozpin's team in close pursuit. They were at the bandit camp, and almost too late, but a lucky break (or unlucky depending on how you looked at it) saves Ruby. Her plan starts now.

Ruby was so much like her mother, and yet different in subtle ways too. That's the one thought that she can focus on, even though she knows she should be focusing on how her plan failed. The bandit leader had timed everything right; Vernal was in position, she had instructed Ruby, and Pyrrha was aligned beneath Cinder's heel, perfect to give Ruby all the motivation she needed. Qrow even managed to stop Cinder's green haired sidekick from saving her. But none of it mattered, Vernal still hadn't gotten the Fall Maiden powers.

Raven's vision just cleared in time to see Vernal's guns fail. How? Was it Pyrrha's semblance or her brothers? It didn't matter, the Mistralian champion's decapitation blow seals her fate and grants her the power. It was close, so close for Vernal to gain those powers, but Maidenhood is always a tricky thing. Then the green haired girl freaks out with a twisted vision of _that monster_. Not a headache Raven needs right now, especially after her Silver induced one.

Closing her eyes to shut out the vision a bit, Raven remembers perfectly where the girl is and charges in. She still has her Aura up, not allowing Raven to finish her off instantly, so the bandit leader simply makes a portal to someone else and knocks her through it. Not the most optimal move in the long run, but the girl was just a brat and she needed that headache gone.

She watches Vernal fly off, Pyrrha in close pursuit. Turning tail and leaving? No, not Vernal, she's taking her shot at the mantle once more. Smart girl, Raven can't help but feel a surge of pride at the girl she's taken under her wing. The pride quickly turns to a pang of pain as she looks over at her daughter, who's chosen to stand with Oz. Raven tried to show her the truth, but she still chose… it didn't matter. None of it did. Her plan had failed, however close it came in the moment. And now, two of her daughter's friends are rushing at her, the green clad boy and the girl with the huge hammer. She draws her blade and charges them, anger fueling her movements.

The two of them are skilled, far better at teamwork than anyone else she faced today. It reminders her, of herself and Summer when they were together at Beacon, and that grief adds yet more rage to her strikes. The rage makes her sloppy, she can see the slight slip ups in her form, a wobble here or there the Mistralian boy is quick to take advantage of, slipping his blades past hers, catching hers so his partner can take advantage with her heavier, slower, weapon. It isn't enough, even sloppy, Raven's too fast, too strong for them and she powers through them, knocking the boy back with an armored blow to his face and whipping her blade around to meet the girl's attack before pushing her back.

The girl looks worried for a moment before grinning and flicking a cap open on the shaft of her hammer. Raven, even enraged, isn't a fool, and steps back before letting her activate the hidden trick on her weapon. Based on the ozone smell it sends electricity coursing through her. Without anything to block her hammer anymore and a sudden surge of strength, the blow flies past Raven, opening the pink and white girl for a slash as she steps by. The cut isn't a deep one, but it breaks her Aura – the girl must have been running low before. With her Aura gone, her semblance cuts out as well, the shocks now causing her intense pain.

The boy runs in aggressively, his guns sheathed as he reaches out with his hands. A foolish move, Raven knows the kind of Aura strikes he must be preparing. Her swing is dodged as he moves in, but that merely opens him up for a kick that catches his midsection and tosses him back towards his partner. The strength of such an Auric attack could be great, but it had it's limitations in a fight against hunters, or other skilled fighters. The Aura was lost if the blow was stopped or avoided, and you lost reach, a factor the young man had not considered.

Raven doesn't even get to take a step towards them when she sees a crow flying straight at her. Her brother seems to be upset with her trying to defend herself against those invading her home, what else is new? (Well, there is the armored boy almost having to be held back by his friends as he sees her and screams something about 'killing his sister', it explains his deal at least but it isn't too relevant to her current situation). He transforms back and the two duel back and forth a bit, Raven getting her anger back under control – she can't afford to be careless when fighting Qrow.

The fight is getting her nowhere, and her camp is falling further out of her control, so she finds an opening and turns into a bird, seeking to fly away when she sees Ruby, on top of one of the peaks in the camp wall, fire three times. Her avian eyes track the shots slamming into Vernal, causing her lieutenant to fall into the trees. She lets out a mournful wail as streaks across the sky towards Ruby, turning back to human to bring her odachi down upon the young girl- only to be blocked by Qrow, having flown the same as her and blocked the chop with his larger sword.

He had landed beside Ruby on the wall, while Raven was in the air, balanced against his sword with her own. "Look at yourself, do you know what-"

"NO!" She cuts him off whatever latest dagger of guilt he was trying to bury into her gut and channels her Aura and magic into her blade, causing it to crack, then explode flames erupting out of it, blossoming into a firestorm around them. The fire races outward at every angle, washing over Qrow, his niece who had been trying to edge around him and attack her, and even Raven herself. The blast blew apart the section of the wall they were on and lit most of the rest of it on fire, Raven dimly noted as she fell to the ground. Survival instinct kicked in and Raven transformed, inverting her body position and flapping her wings to reduce impact before transforming back and absorbing the reduced shock with her knees.

The damage from her foolish attack mostly mitigated, the bandit leader looked upon her camp and despaired. The walls constructed to defend the camp were busted down or being consumed by fire, most every tent had been torn down or flattened, and worst of all her people had been entirely defeated, the last of her tribe being knocked out at that very moment by Ozpin himself. Qrow and Ruby were picking themselves back up, and even Vernal was in dead- wait. There was still a connection, could she have…? Raven saw her brother's figure moving towards her from past a curtain of fire and quickly fled, the camp, darting through the trees before taking to the air, transforming once more.

Raven flew as quickly as she could, seeking to make space before she tested out her theory. She reached out again on that connection on Vernal and found it to be in slight danger, but dwindling. The exact amount of how much danger was difficult to determine, more of a side effect of her Semblance. Her Portals were connected to someone she was close to (or had been close to, at some point), and the 'danger sense' was a way to let her respond fast, to get there in time to save those close to her. It was how she had kept an eye, so to speak, on Yang while running the camp, and how she had saved her from certain death on the train many months ago.

Vernal's aura had been broken, and as much as she would have liked to believe that her second in command could beat Pyrrha, with the Fall Maiden powers on the Mistralain hunter's side, Vernal would have no chance of winning by herself. That, and there was still a feeling of danger, dim but everpresent, like a wolf waiting for an opening. Pyrrha must have been watching her girl, waiting for some thing. Like a sign of aggression, untrusting but unwilling to attack. Raven turned back to human form as she realized that they weren't killing her for the same reason Salem needed her. Both sides wanted the relic.

Raven cut down a tree, leaving a completely smooth, level stump for her to meditate on. Ozpin's minions thought they had their Spring Maiden, so they wouldn't bother with her for the moment, and she needed the time to gather their thoughts. To calm herself (she had always been good at keeping her cool, and while the days events had pushed her harder than she ever had been before, she would **not** let them break her). She sat cross legged and put together every piece of information she had.

1) Oz's minions needed the Spring Maiden for the relic, which they desperately wanted, enough to cut a deal with a bandit

2) They were weakened by the fight, but none of them were dead yet. Still too numerous and powerful to fight by herself. She would kill some of them, but an assault now would just see her dying.

3) Leo guarded the relic but was a dirty coward and had turned tail on them

A smile formed on her face as her plan came together, on how to salvage everything. She stood up, stretched for a moment, then opened another portal and stepped through.

She walked out into the dirty floor of a storage building. She knew that this was the ground level, not that there were any windows to prove it. The room is small, with a desk in front, a set of stairs leading upwards to her left side, a tv playing old 'wild west' Mistralian flicks to the right, and a trapdoor to the basement in the back of the room. The heavy door behind her had many locks on it, most designed to keep people in rather than out. "Lin Ji" she says in way of greeting as she looks at the man behind the desk.

He's an older man, nearing his fifties, wearing a white, slightly grease stained tank top. His pants are black sweats, though the loafers on his feet and gold watch on his wrist hint at bit more wealth and style in his formal dress wear. He has salt and pepper hair and a still gleaming smile, his initial surprise and wariness fading away as he recognized her.

"Raven, you shouldn't have surprised me like that" he greeted her, getting up from the desk, subtly flexing his biceps a bit. "What if I'd been dealing with a customer today?"

"Dressed like that?"

"Not like you would have known before you came here." He stands with a certain, flex as he does so, obviously trying to catch her eye. She'd feel flattered, but it's been years since they've been together, and she has more important things to do.

"Lin, how many huntsmen are around the school right now?" She bluntly asks him.

"Eh, why do you want to know that?" She just turns to look at him. "Oh don't give me that look- yeah, I can tell that you're giving me one behind that cold mask of yours, I'm just curious. Honestly, it's been pretty quiet around the school since the Battle of Beacon, maybe even a bit before. Not that I'm complaining, less hunters means less problems getting a hold of my merchandise." He says jerking his thumb towards the tightly sealed basement.

"Speaking of which, why don't I hook you up with a few of my products. You haven't been acting as close to me lately, but that's no reason not to rekindle a good thing." He has what he thinks is a charming grin on his face, but just feels lecherous and annoying to Raven right now. Why did she ever think him charming? Well, she knows part of it.

Her Semblance needs her to form a close connection to someone to Portal to them. Lin was well situated in Mistral, both for his business and getting around the city quickly. She couldn't fake a connection, but she had learned much about the nuances of her Semblance over the years. There were things she could do to help speed those connections along, drinking and sleeping with that person chief among them. They weren't enough by themselves (though they did vastly help), she had to really work to convince herself of it, which meant looking at them in a certain light, like she had in the past.

Over the years and her travels, she'd made a number of connections like the one she had with Lin, all over Remnant. Also like Lin, few of the people she had connected to held any sway over her heart anymore, even if she could remember when they did. They hardly matched the vast networks held by Ozpin (which must be equal to Salem's), but they were a slight edge she had. Raven felt that she'd be relying on them heavily soon.

"No need, the camp's been demolished by hunters, I won't be needing your slaves any time soon." Lin had plenty of 'merchandise' that was too difficult to be used by most of his clients (usually those that already had their Auras woken). People that wouldn't work and couldn't be convinced by beatings or threats. They'd either revolt and kill their masters or be killed, a 'waste of clients or merchandise either way', Lin would say. Raven provided him with a good deal to fix this problem: Give her the slaves for free and she'd give his slaving crews advanced notice on the towns she was going to hit. It had worked well for both of them; she'd get more members to replenish her tribe after bad runs and he'd get easy pickings from a weakened town or villagers desperately fleeing on the road.

It wasn't a perfect system, there were some hiccups they had to deal with. Records had to be maintained to ensure that Lin didn't try to give her any people from a town she had hit. The bandit leader also had to work out a deal for them that helped convince them to work with the tribe. Honestly, she felt her system was more than fair – 2 months of work in exchange for a deal at the end. Either they leave with nothing from their time, but they get their freedom, or they get to keep regular earnings from their work with the tribe and stick around. A far better deal than any of them would get in a mine or at other jobs, and usually less dangerous than such jobs to boot. Fair treatment as 'prospective members' rather than slaves also went a long way to obtaining their loyalty, such that most actually stayed with the tribe in the end. Two months gave them enough time to assist in usually one major raid at least and learn the basics of helping around camp, giving a good test to see if they'd be a good fit, while not ingratiating them far enough that if they did leave they'd have to great a knowledge of their movement patterns or tactics.

All in all, an excellent system, if Raven thought so herself. The tribe had been pretty stable numbers wise for the past few years though, so she hadn't needed Lin's services. That and the Grimm had tended to be following a bit to closely on some hits or other issues caused the towns to not work out so well for Lin to get many new slaves from her. The ex-huntress didn't miss the calculating look in his eyes as she told him about her misfortune.

"Ah, that's a shame, a real shame. Well, let me know when you want to start rebuilding, I'll have some new members to help fill out your tribe again. Hey, I've even got a place in the city if you need to lie low for a bit, those hunters can be really annoying and persistent" he offers easily, heading over to the desk.

It seems like a kind offer, but Raven isn't a fool. That look in his eyes, the previous drought of good targets… he was eyeing up her worth to him, and falling short of her bounty. She also knows that while his keys are on the desktop, his shotgun-staff is hidden under it. Foolish on his part though, while he always keeps his weapons close to him, Raven knows to always keep hers within arms reach.

Her sword slashes down just as he turns his eyes away from her to move around the desk, the ice Dust blade slicing down across his back and curving through his spine in an instant. He starts screaming out, more in shock than pain that hasn't had enough time to fully reach him, and it's cuts short by her spinning into her next attack. The Odachi cuts off his head before he finishes falling to the ground. No chance to raise his Aura, and she doubts anyone will have heard his screams – he had soundproofed his building for a multitude of reasons.

Raven casually walks around him, trying to avoid the worst of the blood spraying about (not that she wasn't used to it by this point in her career) and grabs the keys for the front door. She walks towards it before pausing for a moment, then heading back the other way. She opens the trapdoor locks and flips up the heavy barrier, opening it and letting a bit of light stream down into the darkness bellow. A quick flick of her hands sends a splitting barrage of small icy bursts, each one homing on a lock on all the cages she knew were down there. The locks froze almost instantly before shattering.

There were no words from bellow, just surprised and confused sounds, so Raven spoke to them. "You're all free now, you can leave whenever you'd like." Then she turned back and opened the front door, leaving the building. She knew that they'd take a few minutes, stunned and disbelieving, but eventually one of them would try testing out if it was a trick or not. With their cages open they wouldn't have to starve to death trapped in a basement no one would open.

Raven steps out into the light of day, taking off her mask and basking in it for a moment before leaping up, then ascending through the air, riding the currents towards the peak. To Haven.

Raven is sure she can get past the security around the school. Her experience and skills make her top notch, to say nothing of her bird transformation. And she finds herself proven entirely correct, when she flies over the grounds and sees… no one. Not 'very few' or any sort of quiet activity, but no one. She knew that Leo had turned traitor, but she thought he'd leave at least _some people_ there, to at least divert suspicion. She even lets out a few loud caws while acting bird like just to see if someone will come out of one of the rooms, but nobody came.

She shakes her feathered head, Raven scouts out the place a bit more, before finding Leo's office. The open window is nice too, not that she couldn't have gotten in without it. She flies inside and lands, hopping from the window ledge to Lionheart's desk. The lion faunus startles for a moment at her entrance, before calming himself. "Oh, I'm sorry little bird, I just- wait, is that you Qrow?" He asks, now looking suspiciously at her.

"Nope" Raven responds, transforming back and taking a half-lounged position on his desk, awaiting his reaction. His flailing backwards doesn't disappoint, and she lets it carry on for a few moments before shifting off and pointing her sword at him, resting it just under his chin, the headmaster's back against the wall.

"I- Raven!? Wh-What are you doing here?"

"Well I can tell you that I didn't come for the quaint ambience of your little ghost school. I came here for the same thing that everyone's been drawn here recently: The Relic." She hears a noise, just outside the slightly ajar door to Lionheart's office, a scrapping of something like bone on tile. "Not a word" the black haired bandit whispers before taking the form of a bird once more and remaining motionless on the desk.

The seer orb pushes through the doorway, a few of it's tendrils that hang down scraping against the floor. The black depths of the orb fill with a crimson smoke, searching for something, looking around. Raven's eye facing the orb is completely still, but the other one follows Lionheart's form. He somehow looks even more nervous than before, but he doesn't make a move. The orb 'peers' around for a bit, but then the smoke starts to recede. Raven darts forward when that starts happening and transforms, cutting it down before the smoke can reverse direction, before Salem can bring her gave back.

The Grimm shatters from the blow, though even the 'glass' starts disintegrating into black specks. Leo howls out "No! Why did you do that? Do you have any idea what she'll do to me?"

Raven just smirks coldly "It'll be less than what you'll get if you don't work with me, and you know it, or you would have called out for her."

"I thought you'd be smart enough to wait for the Seer to pass rather than attacking it and drawing her ire." He seems to be building up steam, anger replacing fear for a moment as he checks the Dust Dueling Disk hanging on his arm. "You must be crazy if you think I'll help you. I'll already be in enough trouble for letting this happen, she'll kill me if she finds out I helped you." As he talks, he points at the destroyed Seer, which 'just so happens' to bring his dueling disk almost in line to fire on her.

"Yes, but she'll kill you once she finds out – if you don't work with, me I'll kill you where you stand." She emphasizes her demand by lighting the Maiden Anima from her eyes at the end of her sentence and is rewarded by seeing Lionheart's arm fall and face become slack.

"You'r- You're-"

"That's right Leo, I claimed the Fall Maiden's power. Did it well over a decade ago, and you never guessed. I'd say it was a sign of your impending treachery towards Oz, but given that Salem didn't find out from you either I have to think it's merely incompetence" Raven says, as if she hadn't spent much time and effort to keep this power secret from everyone.

"My treachery? What about yours? You betrayed them just as much as me, even moreso-"

"What about the vault Leo?" The ex-huntress asks, her eye's narrowing dangerously. "I don't have the time or patience to trade barbs with a beaten old man – and that means you don't have any either. Take me to the vault, now."

"If you kill me you'll never find it. You won't dare hurt me." Leo puffs his chest up defiantly, though he doesn't get close to as bold as raising his weapon against her again.

"Wrong answer. If I have to, I'll kill you without a second's thought. If I'm forced to wait until Ozpin and his people get here, then I'll eliminate you and cut a deal with them. I need my tribe back and they need the Relic. Besides, I just helped them eliminate the Fall Maiden and take out a bunch of Salem's minions. Cutting down a traitor like you will be the last bonus I need to convince them to work with me." As much as Raven knows she's exaggerating some of this… it really is her plan if she can't get the headmaster to work with her. Not an ideal outcome, especially since even if it works it'll be putting a target from Salem on her back, but it would be her best shot at getting her tribe back.

"Ozpin is back? Cinder and Watts… defeated?" Lionheart looks floored by the news, which may not have been handled the most tactfully, but Raven doesn't have time to deal with any of his insecurities.

"Yes to both. They'll be coming back from their little mission to my camp soon, which is why we need to hurry to the vault and get the Relic, now." Raven suddenly steps up to him, causing him to take an involuntary step back, and she raises her left hand, now crackling with magical electricity. "One last chance. Give me the Relic and I let you live. Decide."

"I-" Lionheart pauses, eyes darting around for a moment, looking desperately for some kind of escape before his shoulders slump down in defeat. "Fine. I'll help you." She lets her fist fall down and the electricity disappear while she steps to the side, motioning for him to lead the way.

Professor Lionheart walks out of his office and down the deserted corridors. As she follows the teacher, Raven realizes that outside observers might think they're very similar, and in a way, they are. They can both be pragmatic and are both wise enough to be afraid of the vast, immortal beings ruling over Remnant and running their little shadow war. But Leo Lionheart always sought to run away, to hide and not be noticed, and to bow and scrape when he was, in fear for his life.

Raven is afraid as well, but there's a spark of ambition within her that hasn't been snuffed out by those fears. A motivation that drove her to gain more power. A voice inside her head that doesn't take the easy way out of bowing and begging Oz for scraps and forgiveness. A part of her that wants to stand up against both gods that try to control her and strike back at the 'wicked' Salem and the 'great' Oz! This move might be throwing away every last bit of good will she could ever have with Oz, and it's tempting to go for a safer option and bargain with them. To go back and act as if things were the same, like she had been before she had gotten wrapped up in their world of magic and epic conspiracies. But things had changed, she had changed vastly from her time since then, and as much as she might have pretended for the past few years, this past day had shown her she was just putting off the inevitable. She doesn't want to do that again, but more than that, she just can't quite bring herself to throw away her ambitions, not when she could take her shot here. Her pride and desires drive her feet onward, down the twisting school paths, to the vault.

The hallways are completely empty and quiet as they walk by, and Raven even sees dust covering the doorknobs. Has no one been around to even clean the school? She glances at Leo and thinks that either his manipulation skills are either far better than she had presumed, or the hunters of Mistral were dumber than a sack of bricks. Not that it really mattered which way it was to her plans in the end.

Lionheart leads her through the austere hallways to the main entrance. "We're here."

"You hid the relic at the front of the school?"

"It wasn't my design, but yes it's hidden under here." He walks down the stairs, taking out his pocketwatch and placing it in the open pendant of the statue holding up the main platform. The watch whirs to life (definitely a sign of Ozpin's work – what is with him and clocks and gears anyways?) the hands ticking by as the statue woman spin downward, revealing it to be a lift. Raven lightly pushes Leo onto it before following herself.

The lift descends several hundred feet, going deep underground. It's dark at first, but a few rings of blue light flash by as they go down. The steady light comes as they approach, from the leaves- no, the blossoms of a giant tree, stretching up in the cavern. They glow with a dim amber light.

The lift hits the bottom, and they wait a few moments as the grates click down and let them pass. As she walks forward, Lionheart trailing to her side and slightly behind, the groves in the ground fill with a blue light, illuminating a path to the 'doorway', dotted by three larger pools of blue light. The doorway seems be made of sheets of gold folded over each other, like flowers or an open fan, with the tree growing above it, with roots reach around and down. The lights help reveal that this platform isn't even the bottom of this crack in the ground, which lurks unfathomable distances down over the sides of this main platform.

As the Maiden walks forward, she sees some of the flower petals drift off from the tree, before disintegrating a short while after contacting anything else. Raven has to admit, it's all very beautiful. Also, massively overblown. She gets that it's the 'Vault of Spring', but did he need to make it this obvious? That's an actual question, she has no idea of the enchantments Oz worked upon this place or how magic really works. Sure, she knows how to fight with it, has honed herself to do so over many, many years, but something like this? It just serves as another reminder of how far behind she is compared to Salem and Ozpin.

She stands in the final blue circle of light before the doorway and asks "Alright, how do I do this?"

"Well, I was told that the Spring Maiden just places her hand on the door and it will open, revealing the Relic within. I've never actually seen it done, myself."

With a quick nod of her head, Raven strides forward. No time like the present, and no time to dawdle. She places her hand on the door, flaring her eyes for good measure (ready to strike Lionheart down in an instant if it's a trap he tried to lead her into). Blueish-white vine patterns snake their way across the door and then the segments 'fold' inward, the mass disappearing into the next before the last ones disappear into the door frame itself.

On the other side is something beyond the cavern, something far vaster. The doorway obviously serving as some gateway to another world or dimension, as it's filled with sand. A desert stretches out before her eyes, the only features beyond endless hazy plains of sand are three stone stepping platforms and a small stand, atop which lies a gold and blue lantern type orb thing. The Relic.

Cautiously, Raven steps forward, expecting… something. Some trap she wasn't aware of, Lionheart pulling a last minute trick and locking her away in this desert world forever, or even a judgement, Ozpin's voice booming out and declaring her not worthy and cursing her. But nothing happens. It's anticlimactic really, she grabs the Relic of Knowledge and carries it back with her to the cavern.

Could she have done this at any time? Was it really this easy? Circumstances had aligned in her favour, but… she had always been so afraid, so worried of all the things that could go wrong that she never would have dared to try anything like that before this day. Maybe she should be a bit more daring.

She breaks off her thoughts to focus on the headmaster, who doesn't seem to have noticed her inattention, likely as taken with the events that happened as she was. "Leo, how do I use this?" She says holding up the relic, realizing that while not heavy, it's a bit cumbersome to carry around. The lantern must be able to respond to her thoughts to some degree as it shrinks in size, making it still somewhat bulky, but now able to clip onto her belt without any real problems.

"How am I supposed to know? Ozpin never trusted me with that information." An undoubtedly wise choice considering all the betrayals Leo had done to his former friend, but the Spring Maiden couldn't really appreciate his foresight and wisdom at the moment where it denied her what she desired. "Can I go now?" She sees the fear in his eyes, like he's expecting her to attack him now that she has what she wants.

"Fine. Go upstairs and call in the White Fang and any students or hunters you can."

"What? No, I- I did what you asked of me, you can't give me any more orders." Trying to be brave again. Well, Raven will give him an 'out' then, as reward for helping her thus far.

"Oh, you don't have to do it. I just thought you'd want to" she drawls out waiting for him to ask, or put the pieces together.

"Why? What good would it bring me to do that? I've betrayed both of them by helping you." Ugh, he looks so pale from saying the words (as if mentioning them out loud suddenly made the realization of what he'd done hit him) the bandit woman almost thinks he's going to be sick.

"You have betrayed everyone else, but they don't know that. Not yet, though they certainly will in time. That means you have a bit of pull left in your name, and I'd advise you use it while you can. Your rusty old dueling disk will hardly be enough to defeat Ozpin and Salem's forces by itself. Why not let them whittle each other away a bit first." She lets the words sink in for a minute.

"… This was always part of your plan, wasn't it? Let me think I'm free only to yank me back" Leo mutters back, half-heartedly.

"Oh no, you always had a choice" she lied. "It's just that what helps me helps you. Now go back up" she says, flicking her fingers up towards the lift. "I have some thinking to do, and I'm sure you have plenty of calls to make and lies to spin before our 'guests' arrive."

Lionheart gives one last untrusting and fearful glance back towards Raven before going back on the lift and ascending above. Raven sits down cross-legged as she plans out her next moves, letting the amber petals drift by her as she meditates. This will be the day, her day.

A/N: Whew, that was a big one. An important chapter too though, so I'm glad I got through it all. Ruby and Pyrrha will still be the main characters, but by necessity I'm going to shift things over sometimes to other characters, though I'll make sure to announce the POV at the top of any chapter. This chapter should reveal a lot of what has been happening in the story so far, and lead into the beginning of the climax of this arc by the end of next chapter. If there's anything you still don't get or are unsure about, or just want to mention what you felt/liked/didn't like about this chapter, please comment on it. Things are picking up for me work wise, so I'm not sure if I can get everything done before November, but hopefully I'll still make my goal. Thank you all for reading.


	30. Chapter 30 - No Safe Haven

Chapter 30: No Safe Haven

The Bullhead flew through the sky, quickly approaching the school. It was cramped, but Ruby had to admit that it was way faster than the one they came to the bandit camp with. More protected too, and with some concealable weapons… it seemed like a marvel of engineering and while the crimson reaper mostly focused on weapons, she hoped that she'd get the chance to check out the ship further, once they had completed their mission.

Something that had seemed a fair way away before last night. Ruby could hardly believe things had happened that fast, but here they were, with the Spring Maiden coming along to help them and even a few of Salem's minions in tow. She slid her eyes towards those less than savoury people travelling with them.

Mercury at least was a pleasing sight, the normally smug young man looking quite upset with the loss of his legs (after removing them Yang had blown them to bits with her gauntlets, mentioning something about owing them a 'real break'). They had stuffed him in the luggage compartment above and he would get shuffled about as the ship moved around. Ruby didn't doubt that he could be dangerous, even without his legs, but at least his threat was reduced and he was suffering for what he had done to Penny.

Dr. Watts was allowed to sit down, though his hands were bound together and Ren was currently holding onto the man's guns. He seemed like an arrogant mad scientist jerk, much like Merlot. He did seem to have a few more manners though, when insults to his creations weren't getting him distracted. Ruby had heard the full story now about the Auric Inversion Field thingy he had made and been amazed. And horrified, especially when he off-handedly commented that he had created the Black Queen virus. Why were so many smart people like him and Dr. Merlot making such scientific advancements for evil? Ruby knew that if she could make something on that level that her first thoughts would be about how it could be used to kill Grimm and save people.

Vernal was the last person she looked at. The woman was standing, unbound and with her weapons on her back, leaning against a wall in almost a relaxed stance. Ruby didn't trust the Maiden at all, and really didn't like letting her have her weapons, though she did logically understand the other's reasoning. Still didn't make the young girl feeling any more at ease around the woman, or like she wasn't missing something.

A soft sigh from beside her brought the silver eyed warrior's attention back to her partner. Pyrrha had been through a lot, but somehow they had both made it out in the end. She had even completed her mission, and ended Cinder, becoming the new Fall Maiden (a mantle Ruby couldn't begin to imagine). Ruby guessed that her eyes had affected the previous Fall Maiden because of her Grimm parts, but that didn't explain how Raven knew for certain her eyes would work there. Or why the bandit leader had given her that advice. Oh well, those were questions for latter. She took her partner's free hand in her own and smiled up at the Mistralian huntress. Pyrrha smiled back but neither of them said anything. There'd be time enough for talking later about how they were doing, preferably in a more private setting.

Across the ship, Ruby saw her sister and other partner having a quiet conversation. They seemed pretty close. She wondered if- Ruby's thoughts are cut off by the ship beginning to descend rapidly towards Haven. "Alright everyone, strap in. We'll sort things out when we land, but a few of you can guard the prisoners while we sort some things out with Leo." Qrow's vague statement was still obvious enough that the tournament fighters seemed to figure it out. Mary looked like she didn't care, happy to not be involved in all these secrets. Umber didn't look too happy, likely realizing he wouldn't be hanging around Pyrrha with this going on, while he usually placed himself at most a foot away, cramping their space. He can't raise any complaints though without looking petty, so he just settles on looking a little disgruntled.

The Bullhead lands down in the main courtyard with plenty of room, the space wide open with no one about. Or maybe not, Ruby thought to herself as she spotted someone moving towards them from a distance, though she couldn't make out who it was given her angle and the windows. They started filing out, Qrow saying "Ren, Nora, Mary, and Umber. You four can watch over the prisoners while the rest of us talk to Lionheart." Ruby guessed she wanted someone in the know to keep an eye on Watts and Mercury, and Nora and Ren looked hopeful, but not in the best shape since their fight, which had been quite draining on both of them.

Ruby stepped off with Pyrrha fast behind her, glad to stretch her legs and take a look around. Oh wow, there were a lot of people here! It almost seemed like classes were back in session with how many students were there… with their weapons drawn… and running towards them.

Yang stepped forward and asked "Hey, what's going on here?" Only for her question to be answered by a bullet shot towards her, deflected by Qrow stepping in front of it and knocking it aside with Harbinger. Everyone else draws their weapons in response to this crazy situation.

"Stop them! They're working for the White Fang!" One of them calls out, Ruby thinks it might be Reese. Some other students are shouting and cursing at them. Another one says "We can't let them harm Haven academy!" The Haven students are running towards them, some of them firing attacks at the group and forcing them to split up a bit as the students start moving to surround them. Responding to the attack, Ren, Nora, Mary, and Umber rush out to try and see what's going on, only to face the same assault and try and defend themselves.

"Everybody, wait! We aren't White Fang, please explain what's going on?" Ruby calls out, hoping to get them to listen and calm down. The group of students isn't huge, less than two dozen, and while Ruby thinks they could take them on, she doesn't want to try it when they obviously seem confused. Her plea looks like it might be met with at least a terse conversation when Arslan responds.

"Professor Lionheart warned us about you. If you want to prove your not working with those terrorists then lay down your weapons!" Before Ruby can even begin to relax the grip on her sniper-scythe however, a voice from the Bullhead ruins any chance of cool heads prevailing.

"Help! Help us! These brutes working for the White Fang want to kill everyone!" Ruby's eyes widen at Mercury's impression of a helpless innocent. Dr. Watts steps in front of the opening, showing off his bound hands.

"Yes, you have to help us! They kidnapped us, catching us off guard when we trusted them."

"You liar!" Weiss calls out at him, her teammates adding in their own voices to similar effect, but it doesn't seem to matter. The damage is done and the Haven students don't seem to be listening to them anymore.

"Get them!" The cry goes up and the Mistralian hunters-in-training charge them.

"Leo, what are you trying to do with this…" Qrow wonders for a second before raising his blade in front of him. "Alright kiddos, this is going to be tough but we can beat them and figure out what's going on later. Right now we have to-"

"- Sorry, but that just doesn't seem like my scene. Have fun with that, though" Vernal says, rising in the air as she starts flying away, giving them a jaunty wave as she turns around and leaves.

"Not so fast!" Pyrrha calls out before calling upon her magic, an orangish-red light bursting into existence beside them. Flying up after the girl, the two of them spiral around each other in the air as they dodge and strike at each other, their flight carrying them over the mountain.

The group bellow is set upon by the hunter teams, having reached melee range with the group. Qrow is trading blows with three students, barely even looking at them as he deflects their attacks, his gaze focused on Vernal and Pyrrha. "Her eyes… they weren't glowing."

"What?" Ruby calls out over the din, having barely heard him even though they're nearly back-to-back. "What do her eyes have to do with anything?" Ruby sweeps her scythe out in vicious cut to keep the others away from her. It works for a moment before Arslan steps in and starts pressing her more thoroughly.

Qrow pushes off from the students in his way, smashing them backwards and giving him the room to move freely, which he uses to angle towards the aerial fight. "It means she isn't the Spring Maiden! A real Maiden would have the eye anima, so the real-"

His shouting is interrupted by Raven stepping through a door nearby him, exiting the school. "- Spring Maiden, is me" She says, with a grin on her face. Her mask is gone now and Ruby can make out all of it's features, including, most importantly, the crimson red anima surrounding her eyes. The rest of her outfit is the same, save for a small and exotic looking lantern of blue and gold hooked onto her belt that can only be one thing: The Relic.

Qrow looks on in horror as she gathers wind around her, lifting into the sky, after her tribe member and fellow Maiden. Ruby's gaze on the scene is knocked off course by a powerful punch from Arslan. "Ruby, protect your team, I'll help Pyrrha" Qrow yells out at her before leaping into the air, turning into a bird and speeding after his sister. Ruby picks herself up off the ground, praying that Pyrrha is faring better than they are as the horde of students presses in on them.


	31. Chapter 31 - Nevermore

Chapter 31 – Nevermore

Qrow raced through the skies after his sister. His sister, the Spring Maiden. He could barely believe how well they she had played everyone, and how he had missed it. He always knew that she was ambitious, her taking the power for itself when the last holder had presented herself to Raven's camp… it was obvious in hindsight.

It helped, that her fake Maiden had Flight as her semblance, though. Pyrrha was a tough kid- no a tough huntress, even before becoming a Maiden, she could take on his sister's minion. But Qrow wasn't so certain about how she'd do against Vernal and Raven at the same time. Raven was ascending, higher and higher in the sky, well above the level Pyrrha and Vernal were on. Was she planning on dive bombing the new Fall Maiden? Qrow realized the girl probably wouldn't hear him over the wind, so he didn't bother transforming back to human to try and tell her, continuing after Raven.

Raven suddenly stops, turning around to look down upon him, or maybe just taking in everything from the world bellow them. Qrow turns into a tight spin, bringing Harbinger out in scythe form for a devastating slash as he turns back to human. The move is designed to cut off her avenues of escape… on the ground. Raven simply descends beneath it and slash him upwards as he's caught mid air, unable to move.

"I think this is far enough" Raven says, and suddenly dark clouds gather all around them, forming a large, unnatural sphere. The lighting is dim, only a bit of light breaking through the barrier Raven has conjured, the rest coming from Raven herself, the magical light flickering off her eyes.

Qrow transforms, getting some control of his movement back. He curves through the air, turning down, only to be met be a sword blow he has to transform back to block. "Heh, I thought you were done having private chats with your bro, what changed your mind?" He flips off from her strike, moving behind her, which she spins to meet with his own blow, his weapon back in sword form, the two blades clashing.

"You're trying to taunt me, to keep my eyes off of your precious new Maiden. Cute." His eyes widen and he pushes off from her, getting space and turning into a crow, diving downward. Raven flicks her free hand upward, middle and index finger extended. The gesture just a focus for her powers (or a flair for the dramatic, his sister did always have that, Qrow was forced to admit) as they make a thermal burst and buffet him upwards. He starts channeling his Aura to his wings to beat past it, but immediately stops as she swoops in after him. He twists and turns, but his corvid body isn't designed to deal with this kind of flight, even with Aura to lean on, and she nicks him several times, her blows forcing him back up and away.

"My dear brother, you think I care about some foolish ex-champion? She's skilled, yes, and I will take care of her in a bit, but I have a more important enemy to deal with right now." Qrow transforms back, throwing his all into defending her attacks as she batters away at him, slowly realizing the trap. Raven didn't 'announce herself' then leave to attack Pyrrha for no reason, she did it for…

"Me?" He gasps out as a kick hits him in the gut, still not quite getting why. The old hunter puts his all into fighting back, using quick transformations to reposition and continue trading blows, no longer trying to get away at all. It's not enough, she slides past every move, not having to worry about footing or balance, the air itself carrying her around freely in three dimensions.

"Don't act so shocked, we tested each other's skill earlier today – without Maiden powers, you are my equal. With your semblance, you scuttled the best inventions and plans Salem's minions could throw your way. But here? At the apex of the world, the sky is my domain, and you stand no chance."

Another slash strikes under his guard, lightly cutting into his Aura, and Qrow grits his teeth, not wanting to give away any more panic, while realizing why this fight is going so badly for him. Even while recognizing how much Raven had played him, he was still two steps behind (though he was surprised and oddly flattered that his sister would place such value on his defeat). Of course Raven dominates the air; she's had Maiden powers for years, transformation before that and lieutenant to spar in such an environment against. Qrow's semblance is useless here: There's no 'environment' to interact with here that isn't 100% under her control, nothing for his bad luck to twist against her. No one else to even see him and provide aid.

Qrow turns Harbinger back into a scythe, hooking around her blade, around hers, leveraging it to swing towards her feet first. The attack's fast, no time for her to even dodge around – but transformation is faster and she turn into a bird ending up where her right hand had been. Qrow notes her transformations are varied, ending up with the center of the bird somewhere where she had been, but the body part can vary, while he only appeared in center mass.

He dips through the sky, his leverage point suddenly gone and tries to fly away, but the ex-huntress' odachi clips his tail feather before he can get a wingbeat away. He tumbles through the air, trying to get away again, even if he can't close the distance to the Maiden under his care, but winds rip at his wings, a gust knocking him back. Qrow tries his best to tumble with it, but the constant spinning about leaves him dizzy. His sloppy sword strike is parried easily – only for Raven's blade to shatter.

With a bit of luck on his side, he tries to press forward, but Raven raises her free palm to as her other hand equips a new blade, a small fireball launching towards his gut as the bandit leader falls back a 'step'. Even point blank, he **knows** he could avoid or mitigate that attack, on the ground. No maneuverability causes him to get blasted backward, and while he doesn't have a moment to check his Aura, he's sure it can't be good.

Raven flies above him as he falls, kicking his scythe out of his hands. A flash of actual concern and possibly regret flashes on her normally stoic face, lit up by her clouds parting, the effect an inversion of an act ending in a play. "I have too much riding on this to let you interfere. I'm sorry it came to this, brother. Goodbye." With her last word, Raven's blade whips down towards his head, the blue Dust blade like a wave of death crashing towards him. In a last-ditch attempt to save himself, Qrow jerks his head to the side, managing to shift his fall such that her blade catches his shoulder. It rips through his Aura, shattering it, through skin and muscle, before cutting into but not through bone. A cry escapes his lips as he falls faster and his vision starts to fade.

As Qrow plummeted through the sky, he dimly made out Raven, floating far above him. Her hand raised outward, pointed at him, ready to finish him off with her magic… then she stops, withdraws her arm before turning and flying after Vernal and Pyrrha.

Why? That thought raced through his mind as his body raced to the earth. Did she not want to waste any more magic before getting into a fight with another Maiden? Did she just not care enough to finish him off? He couldn't muster the effort to shift back into his crow body fast enough to stop his fall and even if he could, the wound on his arm was so deep his left wing would be less than useless.

As a wave of red petals surrounded him and he felt himself pushed to the side, his vertical momentum slowed, he wondered – hoped: Did she spare him out of mercy? One last spark of compassion she had for her estranged brother? He didn't know the answer, and then he hit the ground, skidding and skipping along the side of the mountain, and then there were no more thoughts.

A/N: The fight between Qrow and Raven was very unbalanced (which it was supposed to be) but if anyone's wondering, their transformation skills are about equal, just used in different ways. Qrow can transform for longer and is very subtle about it, useful for when Ozpin needs him to spy. Raven is a bandit leader, so she uses hers to fight, and is better at mixing it up into her fighting style and dodging attacks with it. Just adding this note because I think it's going to be a while if the differences would be shown in the story, let alone clearly talked about. The chapter title doesn't line up too well with the song from the show, but as a title it was what first came to mind for this scene. Maybe I'll change it later, maybe not. As usual, comment and let me know what you think of the story, thanks!


	32. Chapter 32 - Fight

Chapter 32 - Fight

Pyrrha wonders why the students are all suddenly here until they suddenly attack the team. Then she's left defending herself against their shots. Ruby tries to calm them down, but before her side can even begin to get things smoothed over, Watts and Mercury give their unhelpful advice.

Pyrrha isn't given any more time to wonder about it, with the students rushing towards her. She bats off a mace and fluidly counterstrikes a tall boy before blocking a shotgun blast with Akouo and charging into the offending student and knocking them backwards. She hears one of them ask "Wait, isn't that Pyrrha Nikos? Is she really a bad guy?"

"Gren, you idiot, Professor Lionheart said we couldn't trust them based on how they looked! Besides, we both saw her murder that robot chick before the feed to Beacon cut out." There's still a bit of doubt in some of the other students but it seems to have been smoothed over by the instructions they've been given and a lack of communication. Pyrrha practically snorts with anger as she dashes around their attacks. How could the headmaster of Haven do this to them? She had thought something was fishy with him, but this…

Pyrrha whips her head up as Vernal taunts them all before leaving. The former Mistralian champion narrows her eyes, dodging an attack from an enemy sneaking up behind her and smashing their face with an offhand back fist. She can't let the Spring Maiden leave! If that happens and she goes to ground who knows when they can find Vernal again? She calls upon her magic, creating pillars of flame from her hands that push and twist her body through the sky. The huntress ignores the gasps from students bellow, they're far less important than stopping the bandit Maiden.

The two of them streak through the air, dancing around each other, clashing for a moment then spinning around as the break off before they clash again. Vernal is infuriating, her strikes too guarded to let the huntress land any critical blows. Pyrrha has speed on her side and she's able to catch up wherever Vernal moves, but the older girl is more experienced in the air, able to agilely twist and turn around the Fall Maiden's attempts to cut her off. The same goes for her strikes. Milo is too damaged to attempt shifting to rifle mode, and even using her semblance to pull open the bandit's guard in extremely unsubtle ways, doesn't let her land a blow, the woman flexible enough to shift around the jabs before pulling herself free. The strikes are close but as her third attempt almost hit, missing by a hair's breadth, Pyrrha gives up on the tactic.

It was getting her some where, but every time she used her semblance like that, it was just putting their Auras in a tug of war. Even if she eventually came out on top there, she didn't think the same would be said for her magic levels. As nebulous as they still felt to her, Pyrrha couldn't believe that her flames were less magic intensive than whatever Vernal was doing. She at least felt herself getting better control of herself as she moved, getting a better grip on how to balance her hands. Briefly she remembered being shown a comic (was it Jaune who showed her? She couldn't recall anymore, a feeling that left a deep pit in her stomach), where a character, to show how dedicated to training he was, vowed to walk around the village on his hands. She thought of the thing as an amusing, but a useless training exercise in practice, only needing enough balance for the occasionally handstand and flip. She was slowly improving, but she could see some benefit to such training now. She had learned a lot since coming to Beacon.

This running fight style actually helps her a bit, giving more room to move and course correct. No big openings between attacks and regaining flight for Vernal to counter the Mistralian huntress. Of course, Pyrrha saw the advantage Vernal was gaining as well. Distance, plus both their erratic flight patterns making it so that Ruby couldn't shoot Vernal out of the air again.

If she couldn't beat her and conserve her magic… An idea come to Pyrrha and she fuels her fires more, racing around the woman. The flames are no longer dissipating, forming a cage of flame a few meters in radius around Vernal as the younger girl weaves around her. Vernal's eyes light up in shock as she realizes the trap, throwing her body sideways and downward at an odd angle to launch herself through a small gap Pyrrha can't cover. She imagines the bandit must be singed by it at least, but just to make sure, she throws a blast of flame through her orb of fire to catch her opponent unawares. Given the scream of pain, Pyrrha thinks it hit.

Vernal isn't out of the fight yet though, quickly rising around the fire trap and floating in the air above them, her face looking a little raw and burnt from the flames. Pyrrha opens her mouth to throw a verbal jab at the girl but her words fail her as she looks up and sees a giant sphere of clouds behind the bandit, easily ten times the size of her now fading fire cage. "What- What is that?"

Smirking, Vernal raises an eyebrow and taunts "Why don't you find out?" The bandit flies down at her, clashing with her blades and trying to drive her upwards towards it. Pyrrha's skilled enough to avoid giving her control of the battle's movement to her, even if it means taking them further away from Haven. They're almost on the other side of the mountain by the time Vernal must give up on whatever plan she had with the clouds and lets them fade away. Before Pyrrha can even think to cheer about Vernal wasting her energies, she just makes out Qrow, falling towards the ground, blood mixing in with his scarf as they trail upwards and his body plummets.

"No!" Pyrrha calls out before forced to defend herself again. She pushes through every feint and trick she can think of, even throwing in a few blasts of magic to aid them, but Vernal deftly avoids her counters, though they are good enough to stymie the attacks the icy eyed woman sent her way. Vernal's just to maneuverable, too skilled in the air for Pyrrha to beat her here, and she prepared against her raising her hand and sending blasts of magic now.

The speed of a falcon in dive can reach up to 200 miles per hour. It's a useless fact, but Pyrrha can't help but think that those birds must not have had Aura when tested, because when Raven dives and hits her, the odachi clashing against her shield, the blow creates a ripple in the air before sending her spiraling backwards. The blade shatters after impact, Dust shards pelting her as she spins through the air. Pyrrha arrests her movement with a quick burst of flame, only to look up into the red anima surrounded eyes of the bandit chief and be met by an enormous spear of lightning erupting from her hand.

The magic hits Pyrrha like the hammer from an old god of myth, the bolt sending her crashing out of the air. The electricity coursed through her body, infusing her with pain as her muscles locked up. Her body hits the ground and the impact almost feels pleasant in how it distracts her from the shocks. Pyrrha tumbles and flops as she lands, stopping herself just before she goes over the edge of a the cliff she finds herself on.

Peering around as she gets up, the huntress sees that this cliff is a decent sized clearing, a few sparse trees here and there in the grassy stretch before the harsher cliffside or mountain, with some more heavily forested areas to the sides. She hears the two bandits approaching from above and calls Milo and Akouo back to her hands as they appear above her.

Vernal is looking a bit exhausted, but cocky, seeming assured floating beside her leader. A semblance, Pyrrha realizes, the piece and hints of their fights coming together now that the proof is before her. The reason why her 'counterpart' never used any magic beyond flying around when they clashed. Raven- Pyrrha takes a moment to fully take in the older woman. Her mask is gone, showing her crimson red eyes and anima clearly, matching a new red Dust blade drawn from her revolver sheath. Her wild black hair flowing behind her bandana doesn't seem to have been affected by her flights and fights, by virtue of not having been fashioned much in the first place. Her dark red and black armor/outfit drips lightly, though she looks… untouched, like she's entering the fight completely fresh. The blood must be from her recently cut down brother, then. On her hip rests a Dust blade revolver on one side, a few slots emptied but several dozen remaining, and on the other, a lantern. Or something like it, the object is blue with gold handle pieces and accents. Pyrrha can't tell if it's her newfound magic telling her it's significance or just the obvious facts of the situation and common sense, but she knows what it is, without a doubt. The Relic.

Pyrrha's hands shake uncontrollably, and she can't tell whether it's from the repeated electrocutions she's been dealt today or the fear she feels. The emotion itself doesn't seem that strong to Pyrrha, but that doesn't mean her body is responding the right way (or maybe her body does have the right of it, and it's just her brain that's got what's a proper response mixed up).

"It doesn't have to be this way, you know." Raven's voice suddenly breaks the silence, a surprise to both her, and slightly to Vernal too, it seems, the way her lieutenant is eyeing her. The true Spring Maiden's voice is soft, smooth. Pyrrha doesn't know why she's surprised, it's not like there's any reason why her voice would be some guttural growl or a scratchy thing, but the huntress had expected that for some reason.

"You could join us. With two Maidens and a Relic, even the mighty Oz and Salem would hesitate to attack us. I've seen your anger with them, with their lies and schemes, and I've felt the same. There would be no secrets in the tribe. Why waste your skills, your talent, fighting in Ozpin's doomed war?" Raven floats a dozen meters above her, but she holds her hand out to Pyrrha, a gesture of friendship on her part.

The Mistralian huntress gulps, her hands falling down a bit as she considers taking the offer. And she can't deny that some part of her is tempted. A few weeks ago, maybe a month (has it really been that short, or is she just confused from the pain and the fighting?) she might have said yes. To join, instead of die? She doesn't want to die, even promised her friends to try not to. She's angry with Ozpin, for the secrets he's kept. Salem is a nightmare, and Pyrrha questions fighting in this shadow war. Hated Cinder for what she did to her Jaune and Beacon. But…

It's not a month ago. She's let go, of at least some, of the anger that's kept her chained down. She's learned the despicable deeds Raven had no problem inflicting upon her fellow tournament fighters. Raven Branwen might not command the Grimm like Salem, but she has no care for the hurts inflicted by her tribe. Pyrrha's reconciled a bit with Ozpin, and recognized her own faults that led to that tragedy at the Battle for Beacon. The Fall Maiden knows, she is no paragon, no shining example or justice and virtue in this cruel and unforgiving world, however much her fans might think so. She has her own flaws and weaknesses, and while she hasn't learned how to deal with all of them yet or gained acceptance of who she is, she's found an example to follow. Someone better than her, a **true** paragon.

Raising her head, she locks eyes with Raven and realizes what the indomitable figure floating above her feels: Fear. She may hide it well, but the same fear that tempts Pyrrha drives Raven. It's why she's getting this offer even when beat up and overwhelmed by the force at Raven's disposal, the older woman worries about fighting her. Defiantly, the Mistralian champion hefts her shield and levels her spear at the older Maiden. "Nay, I cannot accept your entreaty" she declares (possibly drawing on some historical influence in her speech, because hey, if she's gonna go out in a doomed last stand, might as well make it have an epic feel). "If I were to join your tribe, let fear rule me… I would be no better than thou. I could not bear the disappointment in the eyes of the one I care about if she saw me in such a state. It is for her I fight for, not Oz."

"What's so wrong with having fear?" The bandit leader responds. Her tone has that same, almost cordial quality, but her crimson eyes show a steely gaze. "Fear keeps you alive, something she could have learned." Pyrrha was talking about her partner, but she feels like Raven might be talking about her own. "Unfortunately for you, the lesson to impart it's worth is quite unforgiving." The Mistralian huntress starts to think that she miscalculated. Fear is there in Raven's expression, but it isn't the only thing. Anger, determination, pride, a whole mix of other emotions shows as well. It's… unfortunate, but it doesn't change anything. This is the path she's chosen, no matter it's end.

A chill wind sweeps through the high point of the mountain and no more words are exchanged as Pyrrha hurls her spear at Raven. Raven deflects it with her odachi, Pyrrha using the force to send the spear at Vernal with Polarity. The bandit also blocks the blow, but she's pushed back by it. Raven swoops down, launching another bolt of lightning, which the huntress rolls out of the way of, returning fire with, well fire, a cone holding the ex-huntress at bay.

Vernal has recovered and is flying in from above. Pyrrha slings Akouo like a discus at her. The bandit raises her quadruple crescent blades in a block, flinging the shield aside to continue her rush. Pyrrha commands her spear to knock the shield back down, which clips the back of Vernal's head and sends her off course.

She has no time to cheer her victory as Raven is suddenly upon her, having gotten around her fire while she was distracted. Weaponless, Pyrrha awaits the chop of the Dust blade descending towards her, almost as if in slow motion. Before it can land, she finds herself surrounded by red rose petals, coalescing into a short girl, blocking the blow with a scythe. Her shining light and hope is here. Her partner. "Ruby."

A/N: That was quite a bout of aerial fights. Unfortunately, the conclusion to this match will take a bit as we have to cover a lot going on at the school first for everything to make sense when it gets wrapped up, so it'll be a few chapters till then. This is another chapter title that I think works fine on it's own, but like 'murder, unkindness, & conspiracy', will work better when paired with the next one. Let me know what you thought of the chapter in the comments, thanks.


	33. Chapter 33 - Flight

Chapter 33 - Flight

Weiss turns, placing her back instinctively against Yang's as she fends off the students coming after her. The students are less numerous than the bandits at Raven's camp, but so are their own forces. Weiss counters a particularly skilled combo and ripostes the swordswoman fighting her before backing off to avoid a halberd strike. She summons a black glyph to deflect some knives thrown at her.

Their fighting skills are slightly better than all but a few of the Branwen tribe, and more varied in weapons too. Weiss sees more students running in as well, not all of them having arrived. "Great, their numbers go up as ours go down" she bitterly notes, commenting on Qrow and Pyrrha's departure.

As upset sounding as she is, Yang obviously gets the underlying worry she has for them. "Don't worry" the fiery blond says between punches. "I'm sure they're fine. Pyrrha's a Maiden now and Qrow is super skilled." Weiss can tell that she isn't as sure of it as she wants to be, but is putting on a good show of it to keep Weiss' spirits up, and knowing that helps her nearly as much. Yang might not give off that impression at first, but she can be quite caring and considerate… of her friends at least, Weiss notes, as Yang punches one hunter in training by the groin, grabbing him there and by the head as he doubles over and using him as a human shield against two others trying to attack her.

Weiss is forced back to focus on the fight, not able to let her focus wander even a few feet behind her as her foes press her. They can't flank her with Yang behind her, but it also means that Weiss can't dart around the battlefield and leave her spot, or else she'll leave Yang unguarded. Using time dilation she speeds herself up in a single spot, not moving beyond the glyph underneath her, just using it enough to parry and strike back at everyone attacking her. It works, and the students are driven back. Weiss drops her time dilation just as two more take their place.

Weiss strikes back at the students pressing her, using dust blasts and glyphs to aid whatever weaknesses are popping up in their side's defense. Nora and Ren are still holding up well, their teamwork more than covering for any tiredness on their part.

The tournament fighters, Mary and Umber, are preforming excellently as well. Mary, using her claws and multiple (obviously semblance added) appendages to rip through her foes with fury while Umber fights with precision and grace, throwing off his opponents at critical moments and capitalizing with well aimed strikes, constantly in motion to avoid getting pinned down (at a glance Weiss might say that they were equal, but that only applied to the number of enemies taken down; Umber's style granted him more stamina and took less hits to his aura).

Ruby rips through five students like a whirling dervish, before driving forward with heavy sword slashes, then with space cleared she picked off those far away with quick shots, as they closed in response, she ducked under their blows, striking unarmed as Mechanical Rose shifted back to scythe form using it in combination with an knee to incapacitate one guy and move from there… It's astounding. Her partner is ironically the only one Weiss doesn't need to assist, and the once heiress feels a bit bad about that, knowing that she can barely keep up with the younger girls movements and any Dust or Glyph blasts would likely just get in her way. Logically, Weiss knew that her partner is a prodigy and that Ruby had been training harder than anyone else, but to see it like this, it's still hard to realize (and harder to admit to herself, how far her partner has grown without her).

The only one doing as well as their little crimson reaper might be- Oscar? No, it can't be Oscar, Weiss realizes as he spins that cane around like a baton, smashing the hilt into one foe's gut before poking another a half dozen times and sweeping a third's feet out from under them. Oscar is still a beginner, this must be Ozpin.

Weiss can't stray any more focus, a chain hitting her about the face and a sword strike clipping her side, and looks at how to fend off her own foes. Finally, the chain wielding man to her left takes the bait and wraps his weapon around Myrtenaster and tries to yank it away. It's close, but with Weiss prepared for it, she resists it being pulled out of her hand and channels electric dust through the chain to shock it's wielder. He grip slackens and Weiss pulls her sword away, flinging the chain off of it and into the face the double blade user on her other side.

They really seem to be winning this, if only other students weren't coming in to replace the beat up ones. Ruby glances up at the sky, looking at an aerial battle Weiss can't afford to divide her attention on, and gasps, as if realizing something. "I've gotta go guys, I have to help Qrow!" She cries out before dashing away. Weiss wants to scream for her to stop or in frustration, but it's too late. Her partner is gone and she just has to trust that it's important enough that she has to go now (and it might be, Weiss had been too distracted to even catch half of what was going on with Raven and Qrow).

The white haired girl prepares herself for the next wave when a familiar voice calls out "Weiss? Is that you?"

She whirls to see a shock of blue hair and an electrostaff out of the crowd. "Neptune?" She's surprised, though admittedly she can't say why – it's not like she didn't know he was a student here, the white clad huntress was just surprised to see a friendly face (aside from the team she hasn't had much of those since the battle of Beacon).

"Everyone, stop!" Neptune calls out, and to hear someone on their side call it out, the Mistralian students hesitate. The… (Weiss has no idea what to call their group. Maybe Ruby can come up with a neat nickname for them when things have calmed down, she's good at that) their side pulls back as the students hesitate, forming a defensive position but not making any aggressive moves, causing the students to question themselves more.

"Guys, gals, listen. These are my friends. We fought with them at the battle for Beacon!" The students are starting to look at them with more confused eyes, searching back and forth between the people they thought they hated and their fellow students. Sage and Scarlet… Weiss thinks they aren't too sure, they never knew teams RWBY and JNPR that well, but they do a good job of standing by Neptune. "Most of them aren't even faunus, how could they be White Fang? We-" whatever else he's going to say is cut off by a newcomer from the far end of the courtyard, though his voice booms with years of experience speaking to crowds.

"Those people are criminals! Anarchists who seek to bring nothing but chaos to our school, our home!" Leo Lionheart's voice resounds through the courtyard, turning all eyes on him. He stands, firmer than he had seemed a few hours ago when they had announced their plan to attack, a Dust Dueling Disk on his right arm and a briefcase in his left hand. "They will destroy us as surely as they destroyed Beacon if we let them. Listen to me, your headmaster, and- and eliminate those fiends!" The hatred is back in their eyes, but Neptune steps up again before any violent moves are made (Sage and Scarlet don't move, looking unsure).

"Headmaster Lionheart, what are you saying? I know these guys, they're cool."

"They are liars, killers who have already weakened this kingdom. They, uh, they have infiltrated the system to find hunters and kill them while on mission. I only just got word of their treachery." Treachery is a good word for what their teacher has been pulling, Weiss thinks.

"My mom and Dad… are they…?" A spikey purple haired girl asks, and Lionheart gulps.

"I- I received their last message, Miss Qua…" Weiss puts the pieces together, of Lionhearts behaviour, Qrow's troubles, and his lies here, and she grits her teeth with anger as she realizes the truth. "They were killed on mission, by the criminals in front of you!" Technically, Weiss wryly suppose that that line isn't a lie, though it'd be the iciest of cold comforts for the late hunters he sent to their graves.

The students have heard enough, the injured but not unconscious having picked themselves back up and rejoining the fray with their allies. Team SSN (that rapscallion of a leader is worrisomely missing in action) fight to hold off their fellow students, but none of them are quite as skilled as their members, and there are a lot of students now.

"Miss Schnee, cover me!" Osc- Ozpin calls out to her. Weiss responds with a flurry of ice shots and gravity glyphs. Ozpin plants his cane in the ground, kneels, and focuses his energy (be that Aura or what magic he has remaining to him). It creates a green shell around him, and he pauses with that for a moment before charging through the hunter students in a line, knocking them over like bowling pins.

The distraction brings them a lot of breathing room, but Weiss is surprised that no one has taken advantage of her openings until she turns to see Yang pummeling two girls that tried to attack her. She gives her a wink and goes back to fighting the students. Weiss takes up a stance and starts to join her until she notices a bullhead land down by Lionheart, opening up to let him on. The headmaster boards, stowing his case and as the Bullhead takes back off, he aims his Dueling Disk at the group and fires a few parting shots. Weiss jumps out of the way of an arcing fire shot, and glares at him. He doesn't get to get away with this!

She turns to Yang, already in sync with her about what to do, but not prepared for the steel boot that suddenly hits her face. Yang's knocked back and the two huntresses turn to glare at Mercury. He doesn't have steel boots, but he does have prosthetics back on. Along with that irritating smirk of his (though the prosthetics look old, out-of-date, or maybe prototypes for his original design). He takes up an L-stance to face both of them, but Yang waves the ex-heiress away. "Go deal with Lionheart, I've been looking forward to this rematch."

"Me too. This time I won't have to throw the match." He marches towards her and Yang meets his movement, but Weiss can't pay attention to that. Lionheart's Bullhead has curved around, taking it away in a less direct route, but it will still be out of her range soon. Leaping into the air, she lands on a glyph, bounding forward from glyph to glyph to close with him. Leo cringes at the sight of her before throwing out a few more Dust rounds from his disk. Weiss deftly counters with her own attacks or dodges around them, landing bouncing sideways and even upside down to get around them.

She finishes her last leap, using Aura to boost her jump rather than relying on a glyph and second jump, to catch him off guard. Her plan works, and Lionheart barely blocks her rapier's point as she lands on the aircraft, catching the blade on his disk.

"Ozpin is back, I've failed Salem, Raven is-" Weiss cuts him off with a series of stabs, pushing him backwards. She catches the glimpse of a few Bullheads heading towards the school, but she can't pay it too much mind as she focuses on stopping the lion faunus in front of her.

"I don't want to hear it! You're a monster who would use other people – people who trusted you – just to save your own cowardly skin!" Blue eyes blazing with anger, Weiss creates a summoning glyph to the side. Summoning can take precious seconds in combat, but she doesn't need the whole creature, and her drive pushes her to complete the sword before Lionheart can recover and stop her. Her knight's sword sweeps through the Bullhead, ripping it in two.

The aircraft seemed to slowly fall apart, as if coming about to the realization that it had been destroyed. Lionheart screamed out as he fell down the side of the mountain in the front half of the Bullhead. Weiss leapt off that part to the other side. The back half was falling apart from it, but it didn't look like it would quite end up in Haven's walls either. The Schnee huntress called upon her family semblance once again and made a series of white air disks to leap on to escape the doomed vessel and land within Haven, breathing harshly as she made a three point landing.

It exhausted her to use her glyphs that much, that fast, but she was glad with the result of her efforts. The headmaster of Haven had to pay for all the damages he had done. Her (self-appointed) mission done, Weiss was tempted to lay down in the small school garden she found herself in, tired as she was. Her teammates might still need her though, so she got up and started jogging back towards the battle. When she got there, she saw it had changed slightly.

A couple more students were on Neptune's side trying to reason with/hold off the others, her friends were still cautiously fighting a few, though they looked beat up, save for Yang (though the yellow glow coming off of her let Weiss know that she was doing the same, the yellow haired beauty was just using her Semblance to push through). Mercury was limping, one of his legs damaged, and looking like he was trying to flee Yang, taking a path that wasn't the fastest but would lead the fiery girl through the Mistralian students to slow her down.

The battlefield itself looked wrecked, scorched and torn up with building's caved in. Obviously, some proficient Dust users had gotten together since she had chased Lionheart. Any weapons with obvious Dust chambers or features seem to belong to a pile of students knocked out beside Ozpin. He's sweaty, but standing firm, nodding his head to Weiss as he sees her.

Some other students begin shouting as they see her. "She- she killed the Headmaster! We have to stop her!" Arslan practically roars, moving towards her. Neptune blocks her path with Tri-Hard, the trident sweeping around and forcing her back.

"I know we're usually cool Arslan, but you have to stop this! Lionheart was playing us, Weiss just stopped him from escaping." He snaps his trident to his side as he steps inbetween her and Weiss and the two Mistralian students stare each other down for a moment. Then the Bullheads start landing nearby. Any hopes Weiss had of police, or rangers, or literally anyone who could sort out this situation peacefully end when she catches a glimpse of the insignia spray painted on the side of one of them. A beast's head with three claw marks behind it, all in red.

The doors of the one that actually landed directly in the courtyard open and a bunch of faunus in Grimm masks and white vest things rush out. At their head stands a man with red hair, a more detailed mask, and a black combat outfit. Beside him stands the only human of their group, a tall, large, middle aged man with a green jacket and black shirt underneath it (curiously, Weiss notes he has no weapon at his side and wears no White Fang or other insignia).

Adam Taurus, strides out, one hand on his katana and yells out "White Fang, by my order as Supreme Leader, set the bombs and kill every last one of them!" The faunus terrorists let out a cheer and begin charging everyone their, pouring in from the sides where the other Bullheads have landed as well.

A/N: A bit longer than I thought it might be, but there was a lot to get through for this chapter, with the big fight and everything. As always, let me know what you liked, didn't like, or found interesting.


	34. Chapter 34 - Valor

Chapter 34 – Valor

Yang blocks Mercury's kicks aimed at her face before sending a few more attacks back at him, which he parries easily. Mercury smirks at Yang, and his annoying face almost distracts her from noticing Dr. Watts slipping out from the Bullhead, having retrieved a pistol.

"Nora, Watts is trying to get away!" Yang calls out to her fellow huntress. Nora looks over at the fleeing scientist before saluting brightly, her offhand smacking aside a student with her hammer. She dropped the cheer and took on a near predatory menace as she chased after the minion of Salem.

Mercury tries to take advantage of her distraction, launching a kick at her head, but Yang's ready for him, having kept him in her peripheral vision as she talked to her friend. Yang ducks under the kick, throwing a quick uppercut to his groin, sending him stumbling back in pain. Aura saves him from experiencing as much agony as she thinks he should, but she grins nonetheless at her successful strike.

"What's the matter Mercury? I thought you didn't have to 'let me win' this time?" He glares, before launching himself at her, kicking at her in the air a few times, then using one of her arms as launching point to flip himself upwards into a quick axe kick to smash down her head.

Yang manages to just barely prevent herself from falling down from the force of his blow. "That's what I meant." Mercury lands almost sitting, but quickly spins himself up into a standing stance, and Yang holds herself back from rushing him. That's her usual style, but she's learned since Vytal. About how just charging in blindly can cost her (and how high a price that can be). He would have taken advantage of her moving in there, she's sure of it.

"Oh, looks like someone's scared. What did losing your arm make you…" Yang takes a step back, but not in fear, or even having anything to do with what he's saying (she's pretty much tuned him out). She takes a better look at him and his 'new' legs. They look old, almost unfinished, with gaps in the metal. She grins fiercely as she looks up at him and realizes why he was constantly rushing in and hounding her: He has no ranged capabilities. No air Dust shots, not even a gun, these legs are 'bare bones' (Yang makes a quick mental note to save that pun for her team when they all get back).

She steps back a few more steps and raises her mechanical arm, folding the wrist down and letting the barrels come out. Mercury tries to move in, but she's already firing, forcing him back and plinking away at his aura.

The grey haired killer darts around, doing his best to dodge the attacks and move towards her, but Yang keeps her distance shooting at him with her arm and Ember Celica repeatedly. The blond beauty leaves an opening and he rushes in, only to find himself knocked away by a left hook taking him on the chin. He rolls away and glares at her, before smiling maliciously.

He dashes forward, as if to charge her once more, only to throw himself away, leaping as far away as he can as soon as she takes a step back and fires at him. Yang's confused for the half second it takes for her to realize that she's in the path of five Dust casting students. The yellow huntress snaps her eyes shut as a blizzard washes over her. It buffets her around for a second before she regains her footing and leaps out of it's way. She's blinded momentarily, the ice freezing her eyelashes shut and making her limbs stiff (it's nature makes the right arm harder to feel, but she can sense that the mechanical limb is a bit frozen over as well). A quick application of her Aura creates some heat around her, melting away the problem just in time for Mercury's leg to smash into her head. He flows from the high roundhouse kick into a spinning hook kick, slipping past her guard again and tossing her backwards.

Yang rolls away, raising her arms up in a block for the stomp Mercury tries to follow up with. She shifts the leg to side, feinting a jab to his groin, causing him to flinch backwards slightly. She redirects her aim upwards, shooting his chin with her mechanical arm. As he's knocked back a step, she fires Ember Celica into the ground, spinning herself upwards. She throws a sidekick at him, but he parries, the force still catching him in the air and pushing him backwards. Yang throws herself in a flip away from him a split second later to avoid a blade of condensed air slicing through where she had just been.

The supporting Dust users are really starting to get on her nerves, but before she can even say anything Ozpin rushes towards them, calling out "I've got them!" To anyone who might be impeded by them. Yang and the other hunters breath out in relief as they no longer have to worry about the elemental force being thrown their way. Yang's eyes meet Mercury's again and this time she bounds towards him.

Using her shots, Yang flips about through the air to strike him at hard-to-predict angles. His defences shifts around well to her attacks, and privately Yang admits that he really is quite skilled, and (bitterly) knows that she might fall if she were to fight him at his full strength. It's not enough though, and eventually Yang sneaks a punch into his gut, following it up with a flurry of blows designed to take advantage of that opening.

Mercury starts to look really worried, his aura obviously not fully recovered from the fight at the camp (neither is Yang's, but she started out better than he did). He lands a snap kick in her gut and tries to get a bit of space. Yang powers through the pain, blasting herself forwards and clapping her hands together. He raises up a guard for his face, but it only manages to get Mercury's own hands to smash into his ears (arguably even worse than if she had landed it – Aura is designed to protect the person from outside threats to it's body, so even though his hands aren't as hurt his ears received no protection from his own hands). As he winces, disoriented, Yang brings down her metal arm upon his left leg. Her arm wins, Mercury's Aura disrupted for a moment and the metal grinds and bend slightly under her blow.

His body buckles as his weight is no longer supported properly, but he manages to react quickly enough to kick her arm with his good leg, flipping his body over in the air, then springing off that same leg before he can quite manage to fall. His hop begins with him nearly horizontal, only moving up a few angles as he soars a few meters ahead, which seems to be just enough to get his feet under him. He starts hobbling away, having to angle around other students as he tries to escape the fiery huntress. Ozpin has dismantled the Dust users, but there are still other students fighting them (and SSN still fighting with them, though they're starting to look pretty battered).

Weiss arrives, the Bullheads landing almost immediately after she returns, and the sight of Adam Taurus cancels out any of the hope she felt upon Weiss' return. Her right arm shakes as she hears him talk, and she grips it with her blood and flesh hand, trying to calm her nerves. The White Fang is charging them, she can't-she ca- Everyone will die if she doesn't fight them!

She still breathing deeply, but she wrenches her legs forward with all the willpower she has, walking, then jogging, before running into the horde of white outfitted faunus. Yang screams out in fury as she punches her way through them, her beatings rippling through the wave of bodies and stalling their press forward. Masks and bones crack before her fists and shots, knocking them to the ground, their comrades stumbling over their fellow's bodies. Staves and clubs and swords strike at her, but she ignores them, blasting away anyone hitting her before they can land a second strike. In the distance someone if shouting her name, but she ignores it, too focused on her foes before her. Something wet and warm hits her face and she ignores that too.

The White Fang is flowing around her now, though several still try to attack her, but she can see through the press of bodies to Adam at the end. He catches her gaze, his head cocked to the side as if puzzled for a moment before his mask dips downward slightly, obviously looking at her mechanical arm, and recognition floods what can be seen of his face in a very unpleasant smile. Yang yells louder (was she yelling all the way throughout this? She couldn't tell), calling upon her Semblance and some fire Dust, creating an eruption around her. The minions are blown away from her, opening up a clear path for the golden glowing, red eyed girl to get to the 'Supreme Leader' of the White Fang.

"Excellent" Adam says he places his free hand on his hilt and prepares to draw his blade. "I was so worried that I'd have to take the time out to hunt you down. Now I'll be able to show Blake your head when she's delivered to me. With any luck she'll be locked up back at my base by the time I'm done here" he gloats, and Yang sprints at him, arm cocked back- only to be interrupted by the big human beside him in a green jacket interposing himself, knocking aside her strike and sending a punch that she blocks but pushes her back.

Adam tries to move around him but he holds his arm out. "Go, I'll deal with the huntress" the man says in a deep voice.

The bull faunus seems outraged. "I can handle one pathetic human-"

"I don't care. I won't have your emotions ruining this operation. Go and rally your troops, I'll deal with Ozpin's minion." The man's words make sense, the other hunters are dealing with Adam's people fairly well, even with the overwhelming advantage of numbers they should have. Yang's still surprised by this conversation happening at all, and even more that Adam seems to grudgingly be listening to this man.

After two seconds of looking back and forth, Adam says "Fine, she's not worth anything anyways. But… I won't ever have you question my leadership or judgement again." He stalks off and Yang could swear she sees the older man roll his eyes at having to deal with all of that.

"I don't know why you're working with Adam, but you picked a bad time to fight me whoever you are" Yang says, rushing him with Semblance enhanced blows to overwhelm him.

"My name's Hazel" the man says, matching her strike for strike. All the damage she'd taken, it fed her Aura, making her faster and stronger, and even with all that she was barely coming up equal with the middle aged man. Hazel's blows are just as aimed and precise as hers, with plenty of power behind them, though to an outside observer the two of them might appear to just be a blur of limbs. Yang's lands a few punches, but even as the Aura flashes on Hazel, confirming her hits, the man himself doesn't react to it, using the moves to hit her back just as hard.

The two of them keep on attacking each other for a minute and as she grows more uncertain, he seems to be growing more confidant, picking apart her style. Who is this guy? He seems like he's stronger than Adam himself (which is probably the only reason he tolerates a human working with him, she supposes), which is saying something considering how quickly he bested her before. The long haired huntress tries to disengage and fire at him, but the large man knocks her shots away with an Aura technique covering his fists, even deflecting a few back at her.

Hazel runs in with heavy overhand, Yang's right arm barely holding up against the force needed to block it. She counters with a left hook, forcing everything she has into that shot, nailing him on the chin. Her golden glow fades with her enthusiasm, as Hazel is still unfazed, the only reaction he gives the turning of his head from the blow. "Not bad" he says before clocking her with an uppercut. The punch makes her rise up in the air a bit before his kicking hits her gut and blasts her through the air, then across the ground as she tumbles across the courtyard, stopping as she slides against the Bullhead they flew in on.

Yang shakes the stars from her head as she rights herself and gets up, watching the battle raging around her. Watts is incapacitated, beat up and frozen to the ground. The White Fang are being marginally more successful with Adam ordering them about, which is all they need with a everyone else tired out from fighting each other. The bull faunus himself is moving towards Weiss, his sword raised high above him.

Yang desperately sprints to her partner, hoping to make it in time, even knowing that she can't, when a familiar black blade flies in from the side to hit Adam in the head before being pulled back by it's ribbon. Gambol Shroud lands back in Blake's hands as she stands defiant at the edge of the battlefield, flanked by Sun and a girl with a rapier with lightning Dust chambers that Yang doesn't know. Weiss takes the opportunity to slip away, standing nearer to Nora and Ren.

"Brothers and Sisters of the White Fang, what you're doing is wrong and you tarnish the name of the organization and everything we've been working for by following this murderer's orders!" Blake's voice rings out and Yang feels an immense mixture of emotions at her erstwhile partner's appearance. Joy, pain, anger, sadness, hope, and fear, all struggle within her as Yang tries to figure out what to do next.

The rapier girl steps forward "Listen to me, I was as deceived as you were, but Adam's vision is not the right way forward. I stand now with Blake, with Ghira and Kali Belladonna, and with all of Menagerie. The people, our people, are disgusted with your actions." She stares straight at Adam as she speaks, to which he openly scoffs.

"You're disgusted, Ilia? How should I feel with you hopping over to that traitor? Blake will hurt you just as she did me, as she does everyone. Did she convince you that the humans can be trusted? That they can change?" Adam rips off his Grimm mask, revealing one blue eye and another clouded over and marred along with part of his face by the brand over it. "They can't change, extermination is the only option!"

He sees his troops pausing to listen to him and yells out "What are you standing around here for? We have humans and race traitors to kill, finish them" he finishes with a growl as he stalks towards the three newcomers.

Yang takes a step that way before Ozpin grabs her by the and pulls her away. "What are you doing? I need to-"

"I'm sorry, but Miss Belladona will have to go without your help. You're simply too hurt to fight right now. Qrow is in that building over there, Ruby rescued him before going off to help Pyrrha" Ozpin says, pointing with his cane to a room sticking out of the main school that seems to be the least damaged of most of the buildings nearby. Sun is yelling out something to the Haven students, but Yang can't really make it out over the din of the battle and her own conversation. "I can help-"

"OZZZPIIN!" A roar from Hazel interrupts him (his voice loud enough to cut through anything else), the calm seeming olive dressed man now looking enraged as he points at Ozpin's cane, and the wizard's eyes widen.

"Ah, it appears Miss Belladona and her friends will have to survive on their own. I'll lead my former student away." His voice is matter of fact, but with how subdued he is… Yang worries for a moment, before Weiss interjects.

"We'll help too" her voice is full of the same assurance and poise as ever, even though Yang can see how tired the girl is. Her usually pristine outfit is covered in dirt and torn in a few places, and even though her legs are shaking, Weiss stands proud.

"Yeah, let's take down big, dumb, and ugly!" Nora cheers from behind her, knocking away a few White Fang mooks that try to encroach upon them. The path is clear for them, but also for Hazel, who begins running towards them.

"We'll take him down together" Ren adds, taking position to fire at the charging man with Stormflower. All of them standing together like that (even if Weiss is taking more of a backup position), Yang's heart yearns to go with them, or perhaps even more to stand by Blake. She chances a glance over at her and sees Blake and her friends dancing around Adam, who's a maelstrom of red steel slashing out.

It's a bitter pill to swallow, but Yang has been learning to fight smarter. To not rush in and lean on her Semblance. The yellow haired beauty doesn't know if her Aura broke or not when Hazel last punched her, but she can only feel a trickle left. If she fought now… she'd die, and only serve to distract her friends from the fights they need to focus on. It burns her up, when the dragon inside her just wants to rush into the fray, but discretion is necessary.

Jogging away from the scene, Yang still feels herself pushed back from the shockwave made when Hazel punches at Ozpin (he must be using some Aura trick, because even with the immense blow and their size difference, Ozpin is merely slid back a few feet), and she knows she made the right call. Not to say she can't provide them with a bit more support.

"Mary, and uh, Umber, right?" The two tournament fighters turn to face her. Mary's looking as exhausted as anyone else, her Semblance limbs are gone and she's leaning against the block of ice used to trap Watts. Umber turns around to look at Yang and seems to be perspiring slightly, but is otherwise looking well.

"My apologies, we were just taking a moment to recover" he says, readying his spear and net.

"Right, I need to guard my uncle, he's been hurt. Can you two hold the Fang off from my friends?" Yang says jerking her thumb over her shoulder to point at the massive melee going on.

Mary looks over with tired eyes before sarcastically saying "Gee, I'd sure love to take on a horde of fanatics for you. And after everything else we've been dragged through today."

Umber steps forward with a brief frown as he responds "It's been a rough day for us both. Please disregard my companion's words, we'll be happy to help. Though… is Champion Nikos alright?"

"She'll be fine" Yang blurts out, the words as much for herself as they are for him. "My sis has gone to help her. Th-"

"Don't speak for the both of us, Greel. I meant it, I'm done!" Mary tries to yell, but it turns into a hacking cough. "I need to get home and look after my children. With everyone else finally distracted it should be a bit easier."

She turns to leave walking three steps away and Yang catches a mutter from Umber, something about 'professionalism' before he speaks up "I understand. I believe I promised you a proper match on the ride over, a thanks of my own for your help here?" She freezes at his words. "Even though you're leaving now, I'll do my best to hold true to my word, provided I survive this fight" he continues before marching in the other direction. "This should be a tad easier with the students no longer fighting against us" he comments to Yang, before whirling his blade into a line of White Fang soldiers trying to get a bead on Arslan and some other students, his follow up strikes very reminiscent of Pyrrha's style.

Mary turns around, spits out a bit of blood before sighing. "We do you have to be so freaking noble about this?" She asks, to no one in particular, before heading back towards the fight, ripping aside a club wielding goat faunus trying to attack Umber from behind.

With her friends in good hands, Yang moves to the room where Qrow is, knocking aside a few White Fang minions in her way. She opens it and sees Qrow lying upon a bench nearby, semi-conscious and groaning. His shoulder bandages are almost completely red, the blood soaking through the hasty job done of patching him up.

Yang pivots as she hears the clomping of boots behind her as another White Fang member moving behind her and she blasts the woman out of the way with Ember Celica. Yang throws her hands out, back and forth as she tries to plink away at the fighters swarming around her friends. She sees Hazel, massive Dust crystals sticking out of his arms, slam the ground and send out an orange shockwave that pushes the four people fighting him back. Weiss is knocked prone by the burst before being set upon by a couple of White Fang fighters.

"Get away from her!" Yang cries out, blasting them before they can take advantage of her teammate. Weiss uses the opportunity to get back up, tossing the yellow girl a quick thumbs up before moving back to supporting her friends. Yang plants herself, keeping an eye on her Uncle while still assisting her friends as much as she can. She hopes that it'll be enough.

A/N: So, I thought I could wrap this all up with Yang's perspective, but as the chapter went on, I realized I needed a POV shift (so many different things happening, so much to remember from each part and reference in the others). Does the chapter title make sense, with the quote I'm referring to? Let me know. We'll go to Blake for the next chapter to deal with a lot of things here, then back to Ruby and Pyrrha. Also, it's looking more and more like I won't be able to finish this arc/volume up quite before November (I hope that this and the other chapters aren't feeling too rushed). I think I will be able to get it done past Raven & Vernal vs. Ruby & Pyrrha, but it might be left on a bit of a cliffhanger still. After NaNoWriMo I'll try to complete the arc, but then the story is probably going on hiatus


	35. Chapter 35 - The Battle for Haven

Chapter 35 – The Battle for Haven

Blake looks over at Ilia and Sun as they raced towards the school. Sun had stood by her for so long, even when she tried to push him away. His usually upbeat expression is replaced with grim determination as he rushes towards his school, worried about the White Fang Bullheads they saw landing within the school's walls. This time, she'll stand by him to protect Haven.

Ilia is on her right and Blake is glad that her old friend is back with her. They have… much to talk about, though now isn't the time. They haven't had any time since Ilia, Corsac, Fennic, and the others attacked her. Ilia mentioned that Adam had suddenly moved up his timeframe after they had got things settled. Okay, not really 'after' things had been settled, her parents house had still been on fire when they left (which Blake still felt marginally guilty about, even if her parents understood). They didn't have time to wait for the ship that was taking the rest of the faunus to Mistral, leaving on a Bullhead right away.

They entered the school grounds and ran to the main courtyard where most of the fighting could be heard from. Some White Fang were rushing in while others were running out some of their injured members. Blake lets those taking their comrades out of the fight leave, but the ones rushing in were taken down as she moved ahead, Sun and Ilia knocking out a couple as well.

They entered the scene to see the students of Haven desperately trying to hold back the White Fang. There's one older human who isn't wearing a mask or Fang colors, but seems to be part of their group. Also, oddly (and disturbingly) enough, it seems like Blake's friends (what are they doing here? Who are these people they're fighting with?) are fighting off some of the Haven students inbetween both of their sides blasting away White Fang members. The damage all over the courtyard makes her think that this battle's been going on for some time. "What the-?" Sun asks aloud, shocked by what's happened

Blake has no idea how any of that happened, but before she can try and figure it out her attention is taken by the most intimidating figure in the crowd. Adam, marching towards Weiss with his blade held high. 'Not again. Not someone I care about ever again!' Blake thinks, whipping Gambol Shroud at him, knocking him to the side before whipping it back. The blow wasn't very damaging, but it sure got his attention.

"Brothers and Sisters of the White Fang, what you're doing is wrong and you tarnish the name of the organization and everything we've been working for by following this murderer's orders!" Blake's voice rings out and the battles seem to stop for a moment.

Ilia steps beside her, adding her voice as well "Listen to me, I was as deceived as you were, but Adam's vision is not the right way forward. I stand now with Blake, with Ghira and Kali Belladonna, and with all of Menagerie. The people, our people, are disgusted with your actions." She stares straight at Adam as she speaks, but grips Blake's hand as she talks. To lend strength from her or to show that she's giving her own. Probably both, and Blake feels heartened in any case.

Adam retorts, with negative implications and vitriol like he always does. She didn't expect him to show his face so openly, he barely ever let her see his scars, even when they were together. It works though, and the White Fang, so thoroughly indoctrinated to him, raise arms in assault once more at the sight of his branding in the Schnee mines, any wavering they had at her's and Ilia's words are gone.

Sun yells out to the students fighting his team and her friends "Hey! I don't know why you've all gone crazy, but maybe focus on the nutjobs in masks that are trying to kill us all?!"

Any doubt that lingered in the Haven's students minds ends at Sun's words and they stop fighting Blake's team (or each other in the case of the rest of Sun's team), joining forces to fight against the White Fang.

"Boy am I glad to see you guys again" Sun says as he waves to his team, knocking aside some Fang members with his nunchucks as he tries to approach. Neptune gives him a big grin, that instantly changes to a look of worry for his team leader.

"Sun, watch out!" He cries, his warning barely giving Sun enough time to dodge away from the red katana falling towards him. Adam pulls his red blade back, sheathing it then launching it forward even faster with his shotgun sheath. Sun catches the blade on his staff, but is still knocked back by the force of Adam's blow. Ilia steps in to catch him so he doesn't fall.

"Thanks" he says easily, bouncing back into the fight, moving around Adam. She looks slightly bewildered at that. 'She still can't believe that he forgives her. That we forgive her.' Blake thinks. 'It might take time for her to really feel that way.' As Adam menaces towards the three of them, they circle around him, and Blake vows to make sure that she has that time.

The Supreme Leader of the White Fang lets out what sounds like quick snort before charging ahead, blade flashing out. Blake clashes with her own blade, switching it to katana form and letting the black blade meet red. Adam's strength lets him force her back almost instantly, but the cat faunus doesn't care, using Gambol Shroud's ribbon to flick at his good eye, right before she blinks back, letting a shadow clone be ripped apart by Wilt.

Off balance, blinded momentarily, Ilia took her moment to attack, Lightning Lash whipping out at her former leader. Adam still manages to block the blow, catching it on Wilt the blade glowing for an instant, the telltale sign of his Semblance building up. He isn't, however, fast enough to block it and react to the nunchucks Sun sends crashing into his back.

Adam just growls at the blow and slashes at Ilia, his series of blow cutting through her defence and digging into her Aura before Blake and Sun can pressure him off, and he uses their haste to do so to gather a few more charges for his semblance, blocking their attack. Adam might be to stubborn to change his ways, with way too much temper, but Blake's reminded of the fact that he's not an idiot.

Adam shifts aside to avoid being flanked by the three of them, launching a few air slashes at Blake, who dodges them with a shadow clone. Sun and Ilia rush him, but Adam's defence stops the worst of their attacks. Sun spins his gun-chucks around and fires a few times past his defence and Adam returns fire with Blush, raising the shotgun-scabbard to deflect a jab from Ilia.

Blake jumps over them, shifting around with a shadow clone midair jump to shift behind him and fire a few shots into the back of his legs. He buckles to kneeling on one leg, but manages to dodge Ilia, grab her wrist and throw her over his shoulder and into Blake. The cat faunus catches her friend while Sun claps his palms together and makes two golden-translucent copies of himself with his Semblance. Adam meets Via Sun with his own Semblance, Moonslice. The red of his hair, blade, and highlights of his outfit glow brightly, contrasted by the rest of his features darkening as he rises forward with impressive speed, moving so fast it almost seems like there are afterimages left not unlike Blake's semblance (though these dark shadows pass too quickly to be of any use).

The red blade crashes against the first golden staff, before slicing in from the side and disipatting it. The second one is split in twain even faster before he continues on with a slash against Sun, the entire combination taking place in a single second. His power runs out as his blade is barred by Sun's staff, not enough absorbed for Moonslice to cut through to the Haven student. Sun grins, splitting Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang apart, flipping them around the katana and pulling.

Adam maintains his grip for a moment before Gambol Shroud in kusarigama form flies in front of him before being pulled into him by Blake's ribbon, the blade catching across his chest. Wilt leaves Adam's hands as Blake pulls him backwards, right into Ilia's assault, Lightning Lash a flurry of steel slicing into him.

"You too Ilia? How? How could you betray me as well!?" Adam howls out, eventually managing to knock aside her rapier with Blush and shooting apart the ribbon holding onto Blake's blade. He grabs her now free weapon and switches it fully to gun mode, firing at Ilia to force her off. The sight of her backing off only causes his mouth to twist in distaste further. "Why?" The word slipping out from him softly that even nearby him and with enhanced hearing, Blake can barely hear the whisper of pain.

There's a part of him that Blake's heart can't help but go out for, even if it's in pity now not love. But the anger and hatred she can see in his eyes reminds her of how that person she once cared for is gone, replaced by a beast that can only lash out the same way it was hurt, not the young man she believed in years ago. "You changed. Became tainted by hate and spread that throughout our entire organization."

"We always have a choice" Ilia adds cutting off any rebuke he can give. "Humans might call us monsters, but we choose to make that true, or to look for a better path. I'm not betraying you Adam, I'm finding a better way, even if I don't always know what it is…"

"It's definitely not this. When you hurt our friends and families and try to claim some righteous vision. You nutjobs need to get the hell out of my school" Sun finishes, making another clone and passing it the red katana. Adam lets out a harsh breath before changing Gambol Shroud into a katana without taking his eyes off his three foes (Blake supposes it makes sense, next to Wilt & Blush, it's probably the weapon he knows best in the world).

They wait for a few seconds, just eyeing each other up, waiting (for the first strike, to hear if anyone has anything else to say to convince the others, any last words). The other White Fang are giving them a wide berth, and Blake can't tell if it's because they're too worried about getting caught up in the high level fight or if Adam gave them a signal to deal with it on their own (He flashed his people a few hand signs before, but Blake didn't recognize them – he must have changed things up since she left, or since before he 'became' Supreme Leader of the White Fang).

Sounds of battle rage all around them, but in this small space in Haven, the noise feels distant (she wishes she knew what was going on around her, to make sure her friends were alright, but she can't afford the distraction). If the tension wasn't thick enough to cut between them, it would almost feel peaceful.

Sun is the one to break that feeling, rushing ahead while his golden double moves around. Adam blocks the nun-chuck strikes and even the bullets Sun sends his way, before blasting him in the gut with Blush. Sun's double doesn't move to flank Adam but gives Blake Wilt before fading away. The former Beacon student takes it and chops down as Ilia moves in from the side.

The three of them have fought like this before and images flash in Blake's mind, of back when they would spar and train together in White Fang hideouts, contrasted now by their expressions and blades. Adam forms an L-stance to combat the two of them at once, building up his Moonslice as much as possible, while Ilia and Blake open up his guard by moving around him, before sweeping in for a strike on either side. Adam swaps Gambol Shroud and Blush in his hands, tossing them to the other hand then raising them to block the girls' weapons, Blush stopping the point of Lightning Lash and Blake's katana meeting his own.

He glares at her with his good eye, not seeing Ilia wink at him. They both know that he trained in Auric techniques to make up for his vision loss, and that they aren't good enough to catch that small a motion. Blake let's go of the blade lock, backing off so that Ilia can send electricity coursing through her blade to the bull faunus. He yelps in pain from that, but the real damage comes from Blake launching herself back forward with a shadow clone enhanced movement, raking Wilt across Adam's neck.

His Aura holds against the blow, but Blake knows she's massively damaged it. Sun moves to take advantage of Adam as well, but the leader of the White Fang recovers in time to flip over him, hurling Blake's blade at her. She raises Wilt in a rising block against Gambol Shroud, the blade spinning like a buzzsaw against her before flipping back into Adam's hands. Adam shoots himself out of the way from Sun's staff with his scabbard before cutting down with Gambol Shroud as he lands, enhancing it with his Semblance. It cuts through the monkey faunus' Aura and back, and Sun lets out a hiss of pain as he scrambles away afterwards. Blake worries for a moment before seeing the cut and realizing he isn't badly injured, the cut is light. It still leaves enough blood to give her weapon a distinctly red edge, blood trailing down it.

Sun still backs away warily, his Aura down or too low to risk being close to Adam. Ilia and Blake step forward and Adam sneers, turning Gambol Shroud into pistol form and fires at his old comrades. Neither Ilia nor herself have a ranged weapon at the moment, but Ilia extends her blade out, slashing it around like a whip while Blake moves in front of her, acting as her shield with Adam's blade, blocking the stream of bullets he's sending their way. Adam dodges back, out of the reach of Lightning Lash, switching Gambol Shroud back to katana form and letting out a Moonslice that rips up the ground in front of Blake, firing into Ilia repeatedly with Blush.

His shots are interrupted by Sun, having moved around the sides to fire at Adam with his guns. The shots knock him off balance enough for Blake to rush in. She jumps at him, blade raised, only to plant Wilt in the ground and jump over his slash, soaring over his head. She lets her left hand trail down, unspooling ribbon bundled in there. He fires at her, knowing she'll dodge mid air with her Semblance. She does so, pulling what's left of her ribbon tight as she speed away, the ribbon wrapping around the hilt of her weapon, arresting the slash Adam was going for. He has a split second to look surprised before both of her feet dig into his chest and knock him back, ripping Gambol Shroud from his grip and back into her own hands.

Ilia lashes at him, but he stops himself from flying into her range, grabbing his own blade that's stuck in the ground. He wrenches it free and rushes at Blake in a rage, the shadow copies appearing again as he charges at her. She leaps out of the way of the first chop, dodges the next two slashes with her Semblance, only to be hit by the fourth and fifth. By the fifth slash, her blade's changed to cleaver mode, and it cuts under his guard just as his blow goes over her, the black and red blades breaking the other's Auras. Neither one gets cut, but the force of his blow knocks Blake down.

Ilia runs at Adam from behind, and he whirls around to fire at her with Blush, forcing her to stop and knock the bullets away. Sun hits Adam the side, catching him completely off guard as Ruyi Bang and Jingu Bang smash into him repeatedly. Sun swings them in a blur, using shots to speed up the strikes, cracking his hands, arms, legs, and face before a double strike to the body takes the breath out of him and sends him sprawling to the ground. Wilt falls from his grip as he tumbles down and he tries to raise Blush only to drop it in pain as Lightning Lash pierces his hand.

The Supreme Leader of the White Fang yanks his hand from his former lieutenant's weapon with only a small hiss of pain and tries to get back up when Blake strides forward and kicks him back down and onto his back. She whips Gambol Shroud down at him, the blood on the blade flying off and splattering his face as she rests it against his neck. "It's over, Adam."

Sun and Ilia step forward too, their weapons readied to strike him if he makes any sudden moves, and Blake takes the moment to see that it really is over, or wrapping up at least. The Fang aren't nearby them now because there are barely any soldiers left to fight for them, most of the downed. The students of Haven are all looking rather ragged at best, but there are still a fair number of them standing. The only one providing any real fight left is the human working with Adam, and even he seems to have his hands full with Blake's friends (she notices that Yang isn't in view either, though she thinks she hears her partner's voice from somewhere nearby, so she isn't worried).

Adam looks at all three of the faces looming over him in turn, the mixture of emotions on his face something Blake's never quite seen before and can't place immediately. As he gulps, like he's had to swallow the most bitter concoction he's ever tasted, she realizes it's defeat he's feeling. She doesn't know how to feel about that, beyond relieved that everyone is going to be alright.

"I-" He begins, but Blake doesn't know what he's going to say as suddenly everything around her, him, Ilia, Sun, everyone and everything disappears into a white void, with only herself remaining.

A/N: This one was a bit tricky to get all the parts feeling right for it, but I think it came out pretty well. Hope the ending doesn't spoil too much, but it just felt like the right way to end the chapter. If it's confusing, hopefully that'll all be cleared up soon. Let me know what you thought of the chapter in the comments.


	36. Chapter 36 - Downfall

Chapter 36 - Downfall

Ruby bats away the students fighting her with ease. At first she thought the Haven students were holding back, but then she realized from their expressions that most of them were fighting her with everything they had. They're all just so… slow (Red roses rush over them like a wave, and students lie scattered in her wake). So sloppy (compared to the perfect strikes Pyrrha would send at her when they trained together). They weren't very strong either, even when the little red reaper didn't get her momentum really going into her strikes.

Having knocked away most of the Haven students nearby her, Ruby chanced a glance up at the sky where Pyrrha and Qrow had gone. Pyrrha was way off, near the other side of the mountain, and going further away chasing after Vernal. Qrow and Raven… there was no sign of them, just a massive dark cloud in the sky. Raven was a Maiden, she must have made that. But why?

To trap Ruby's uncle, the young girl realizes. With Pyrrha distracted… Qrow's good (amazing, he had taught her sooo much when she was a kid and sucked at fighting), but he can't take on a Maiden, not by himself.

Seeing that the others are doing pretty well Ruby calls out "I've gotta go guys, I have to help Qrow!" Then she runs, as fast as she can out of the courtyard, between the empty buildings, over the walls… Ruby's a red blur racing towards the large cloud, trying to plan a way to reach them that high up as she runs. Her Semblance can help, but even it doesn't allow for unlimited flight or aerial maneuvers (or if it does, she hasn't figured it out yet).

As fast as she's running though, it's not fast enough to get to the cloud before it breaks away into nothingness. She spots someone falling- her uncle. Her uncle Qrow is falling and there's too much red trailing up in the air after him to just be his scarf. Blood that's red like… Roses. Ruby calls upon her Semblance at full force, becoming a thin line of red petals racing between the tree branches to get there a few meters before her uncle hits the ground. She spreads herself outward, scattering into a wave of red to catch Qrow and slow his descent as she carries him forward.

She takes him a hundred meters horizontally to slow his vertical speed, before she loses her grip on her Semblance. She snaps back into solid form and tumbles around for a second before using Mechanical Rose to right herself and slow down. Qrow rolls and crashes a lot further away.

"Uncle Qrow!" Ruby shouts out in worry before sprinting up to him. He looks to be in a bad way, that's immediately obvious to anyone. Blood is spurting out of his, and Ruby almost freezes up for a second, at the sight of her favourite (and only) uncle's life fading away. But she's seen this before, dealt with it, this is just like Tyrian's stinger.

She catches a motion above her, Raven, flying as a human, streaking towards where Pyrrha must be. Ruby gnashes her teeth at the thought of Yang's mother hurting her partner, but pushes it aside for the moment to focus on Qrow, trusting Pyrrha to be fine until she can get back to help her.

The red hooded girl pulls out some cloth from her belt, the small first aid section she's very thankful she keeps stocked up. "C'mon Uncle Qrow, just- just stay with me." He doesn't give any response, any sign that he heard her or is even conscious (he's still breathing, if unevenly and raggedly). "Qrow I really need you to turn into a bird now." No response, she shakes him a bit. "Turn into a bird, I can't carry you to safety when you weigh this much. Bird, turn into a-" his eyes open for just a moment and something must catch in his mind, because he transforms as she says the word "Bird."

With him as a crow, Ruby picks him up easily, putting pressure on his wing joint with the bandages then running back to Haven. She goes quickly and makes it just onto Haven itself when her uncle transforms back. Mid leap she finds herself staggering under his weight, but manages to land without tripping or rolling her ankle.

Ruby can't figure out why her Uncle suddenly transformed back, but he looks pretty out of it still. She unhooks Mechanical Rose from her waist and bracer to focus all her strength on moving her old teacher to safety. "C'mon, ugh, uncle Qrow, just a little bit further" she huffs out as she hoists him onto her back.

She makes it to a building right outside the courtyard (even with the door to outside closed the sounds of fighting make it obvious) and when she opens the door she sees a whole bunch of craziness, with some of Weiss' glyphs fading from the air leading to a Bullhead and Mercury and Watts fighting her friends again. Oscar catches her eye and she waves him over.

"Oscar, you have to help! I found uncle Qrow but he-"

"A moment Miss Rose" Oscar says, stepping into the room with purpose. He quickly takes some of the cloth that Ruby left drapped over her uncle, who himself is lying on a bench, and bandages the wound, tying it tightly around Qrow's arm and shoulder.

An question of who is in the driver's seat in Oscar's body are answered when he holds his hands out over the wound and after a few moments of concentration, a spark of white-green light zaps from his hands and into Qrow, his Aura briefly becoming visible upon contact. It doesn't seem like an attack though, and Qrow's breathing seems to steady out.

"Ozpin… what was that?" Ruby asks in wonder. Ozpin looks over her with eyes far too old and tired for the young boy's body he's inhabiting.

"I used some of my magic to help him recover. I may not have much of it left after empowering the Maidens, but I still have a few tricks up my sleeves." He leans on his can slightly as he talks, a trace of a smile on his face as he talks about magic, which vanishes as he continues. "I don't know if he'll make it through this, but his Aura should be kickstarted, so we'll find out soon."

They stand there for a few seconds, before a blast shakes the building and ground slightly and sounds of storms and elemental fury rage outside. Sighing, Ozpin straightens up, hefting his cane into a two handed grip. "We both have our battles to face now Miss Rose. I will do my best to protect Qrow, you must do the same for Miss Nikos." She turns around, ready to save her partner and he tenses to charge, pausing a moment to say "Hopefully, with your weapon, Miss Rose." His tone is a gentle reminder, barely chiding, but she can't believe she had forgotten it for a moment (Ruby thinks that she would have remembered it soon after leaving. Probably).

She runs through the building, out to where she dropped her sweetheart and is shocked by what she sees. Two White Fang mooks are getting their grubby hands all over her baby! Ruby smashes into them, kicking the first away before he can even raise his eyes up to see her. She flips Mechanical Rose, now freed from his grasp, into scythe form, the extension as it unfolds smacking away the other faunus.

Not wasting anymore time with these goons, she folds her precious weapon back up and holsters it on her hip, reconnecting it to her bracer. With her weapon secured, she speeds out, across the mountain towards Pyrrha, becoming a scarlet blur as she runs.

She calls upon her Semblance in touches, to race ahead, to slip past obstacles and soar over any terrain difficulties. It feels almost fun, to use her gift this way, the Semblance she and her late mother share, if only the situation wasn't so dire. She focuses all her might on getting to Pyrrha as fast as she can, which is made slightly difficult by the fact that the young girl has lost track of her partner in the sky. She manages to see Raven and Vernal flying towards the northern edge of the mountain, so she follows them.

Through the trees Ruby can see Pyrrha fighting the Spring Maiden and her minion, the two of them flying around and attacking the Mistralian champion. Pyrrha's holding out well, but when Ruby sees Raven moving to attack Pyrrha from behind, her heart clenches and she puts on an extra burst of speed to interpose herself between the attack and her partner, catching the blow on Mechanical Rose.

Petals drift past all of them as Ruby stands, locked in place by Raven's sword. The bandit leader looks paler than usual for a moment, her eyes briefly widening in surprise, before a single rose petal obscures her features for a moment and the older woman has leapt back, her usual smirk on her face.

"Ruby" is all Pyrrha says as she gets up and stands beside her partner, but Ruby can tell how much feeling is behind that single word, all the hope she feels. There isn't time for any more words though, as Vernal swoops down, firing a few shots at their backs. Ruby moves in front of them, spinning her scythe around to deflect them. Pyrrha steps forward to cover Ruby's back, and though she can't see it, she can feel the tension from the staredown between the two Maiden's behind her.

Ruby moves around, trusting her partner to cover any of her shifts as she fires back at Vernal. Her shots are well aimed, but without surprise on her side, Vernal's able to weave around the shots in the air. After dodging she repositions and fires at the red hooded huntress again, forcing Ruby break off from her own shots, spinning her scythe around again. Normally she'd dodge and continue her own fire, but with Pyrrha guarding her from Raven, Ruby realizes that the fake Maiden must be using her shots to hit Pyrrha if the younger girl tries to dodge.

There was some dialogue behind her that Ruby caught snippets of, Pyrrha trying to get Raven to surrender and give up the Relic, that her life and Vernal's would be spared. Raven's answer included more than a bit of vitriol as she blamed them for her tribes defeat, and stated that she would not go down so easily. Ruby feels the shockwave as Raven clashes Pyrrha, the Mistralian champion holding firm against her blade.

The silver eyed girl catches a glimpse on her peripheral, of Raven's attack missing, only to be powered forward with both hands in a press. The attack shouldn't be too dangerous for Pyrrha but… even as she can use her Polarity to disrupt Raven's attacks, the bandit leader is able to just press ahead and threaten Ruby's safety. "Petal and Hammer, let's go!" Ruby calls out to her partner, breaking away from their back-to-back stance, and moving after Vernal.

She dashes forward, jumping up in the air, curving her back over to look at Vernal with Mechanical Rose held behind her. Pyrrha's moved to position behind Vernal, she notes, and Ruby's eyes gleam as she executes her plan. Rather than continuing the motion for a sweep of her blade, Ruby flies around the bandit as a petal swarm, to throw her off balance, giving Pyrrha a chance to burst through her and catch the enemy off guard… which never happens. Ruby reforms, thinking she had given her partner plenty of time (had been practicing with her Semblance to do just that) and finds herself face first in a spike of dirt and roots risen out of the ground.

She barely has time to wonder what happened when she has to pull herself out of the way to slip away from Vernal's counter. Switching her weapon to sword mode, she blocks Vernal's remaining strikes as she skids off the crumbling barrier to the ground. Amid the sounds of swords clashing, Ruby hears Raven gloating at them.

"I saw that look in your eyes, the same your mother had when she'd come up with an idea. I know your Semblance too, and how you both have trouble recognizing new dangers in the environment around you when you use it. Cute name for your combat strategy, but it won't. Work." Towards the end of her little speech she sounds pressed, and looking around, she can see that Pyrrha's attacks are slowly pushing Raven, back, getting the Mistralian hunter away from the other side of the earthen pseudo pillar as she presses forward. Raven, flings her sword blade at Pyrrha, the surprise forcing her to move to the side to dodge, but not managing to hit her. The hilt however, smacks Ruby square in the face as she tosses it at the young girl. Why would she do something like that?

Ruby's question is answered in the form of two blinding movements, Vernal diving her from the sky with her blades, catching Ruby off guard and Pyrrha's Aura nicked by Raven's quick draw slash. The problems of not have a hilt and Pyrrha's Semblance resolved through magic, as Ruby sees a blueish glimmer from a hilt made of icy around her green odachi blade. The red reaper catches Vernal's first crescent blade, and the second with her sword, but the other two slip past, digging into her Aura painfully.

Ruby shifts blade around to knock the blades away, and wards off all but one of the laser shots Vernal fires into her, retaliating with a kick to the side of the older girl's knee. It works, but is less effective on someone who doesn't need their legs to move, her Semblance able to obviously support her weight. Vernal's Semblance is strong, but so is mine, Ruby thinks to herself before grinning.

Ruby Scatters into petals, reforming in the air right behind Vernal in a tight spin, her sword clashing against the hasty defence she put up. Ruby burst into her namesake's petals once more, pressing the bandit woman from the side, landing a quick cut against her arm, causing Vernal to hiss in pain. Again and again, she'd dash around, using her superior speed to beat Vernal's aerial maneuverability and stop her from getting distance. She wasn't landing several hits, the bandit was experienced enough to block most of it, but not able to do so and extricate herself.

It doesn't last, however. Right as she thinks she's maneuvered the blue eyed criminal into a good spot, she's left defending herself from Raven who's come rushing in. Turning to face her, Ruby catches sight of Pyrrha, stuck several meters away, her legs frozen to the ground. Ruby skids backwards, away from Raven's powerful strike, then gets pushed back further as Raven continues her assault. The slashes don't have any fancy tricks behind them, but they're fast and strong, leaving Ruby few options. Vernal flies around and fires at Ruby, which she blocks, but her motion almost causes her to miss parrying an overhand from Raven. The force breaks her own Dust blade, the shards pelting the youngest huntress' Aura as well as knocking her down.

Before either of the bandits can capitalize on Ruby's state, an outpouring of heat preceding a wave of fire causes all three fighters to hastily retreat. Pyrrha's freed herself and moves to stand by Ruby as the two villains size them up from the skies. "I'm sorry" Pyrrha offers as apology, for the fire Ruby assumes.

"Don't be, your magic saved me, know we need to-" her words are cut off by Raven swooping down, using her bird form to do so. Ruby and her partner are ready, and they spring into action, Ruby moving her rifle up to snap some shots at Vernal, Pyrrha slinging her shield at Raven, forcing the bird into a complex series of dodges shifting between bird and human form to avoid the Polarity controlled shield.

Raven lands on the ground, rushing Pyrrha with her blade, forcing the former champion to call her shield back to her. Ruby slips a few feet away from their duel, to not get in Pyrrha's way, while keeping up the offensive against Vernal, who's looking pretty tired. Raven's voice cuts out through the clearing "Vernal, crush" she says, using one hand to send a blue burst of magic spinning up to the air, where it forms a large wall of ice in front of Vernal. It takes the shot Ruby had sent her way, evaporating a bit of it away, but doing no great damage. She resisted the urge to pull the trigger again, waiting to see where Vernal would be coming from next, which angle she would be flying at her from as the block of ice…

Vernal doesn't dart out from behind the wall as it falls, nor does it fall like she expected it to straight down, but diagonally towards her! She lets out a yelp and dodges backward, but the Vernal somehow knows (or Raven flashed her a signal) and the bandit spins in the air, not crashing into the ground, but flying alongside it as she lifts the wall up, the strain showing on her face as she then brings it crashing down upon Ruby. The scarlet clad huntress moves even faster with her Semblance and a pinch of absolute desperation driving her, zooming out of the way of the mass of ice. The wall crashes into the ground, missing her, but the ice shards made from the impact rain down upon her like a hailstorm, forcing her to recombine. Vernal has landed on the ground, breathing heavily, exhausted from that attempt.

Ruby picks herself up first, shifting her weapon to scythe form as she walks towards the other woman. Before she can knock Vernal out, Raven moves in to defend her last free tribe member. Pyrrha comes in quick behind her and the two girls fight the bandit leader as Vernal slips out of the fray. Pyrrha is looking more than a little scuffed up herself, but no matter how much she heaves her breath in, Ruby can see determination radiating out of her partner's emerald eyes.

No words are spoken, no subtle posturing, the battle's past that point. The huntresses are glaring at her, and she back at them- and then suddenly everyone is in motion, as if on some undecipherable cue. Together they fight, perfectly in synch, the two younger girls strike at the Spring Maiden.

Ruby pulls her blade in high, reaping her scythe at Raven's collarbone, Pyrrha jabs low, Milo stabbing towards Raven's ankle. Raven raises her blade in one hand to parry the scythe, her other arm dropping down, the armored forearm deflecting the spear strike. She moves the scythe to the side and cuts down at the Silver Eyed warrior with her blade, only to be blocked by Pyrrha's shield rising up. Raven spins away, following up with a stab behind herself, which Ruby dodges, flicking her blade up to set it in spear mode. Catching the motion from the corner of her eye, she rolls away from the blow, batting her sword up to catch the tip of Pyrrha's spear, hungrily chasing after her, and deflect it upwards. A quick transformation then back takes Raven from prone to standing a split second faster than could otherwise be managed, turning Ruby's scythe sweep downward from an execution strike to a glaring opening. Pyrrha's trusty shield covers Raven's counter, and though Ruby can hear the buzz to indicate she's electrified it, there's barely a grunt from Raven as her weapon clashes off of it (likely due to the red Dust blade and ice handle, neither are good conductors).

Back and forth they strike at each other, red and black blurs (with a bit of gold in Pyrrha's case) they clash with as much ferocity as possible, relying on their instincts and training entirely, no time for thought or plans, neither side quite able to gain the advantage. It feels like an eternity has passed when Ruby sees Pyrrha take hold of an opening, going low. Not for a strike, but to grab at the Relic, her hand yanking it off of Raven's belt.

The Branwen tribe leader, eyes wide in anger and fear, mixed to something like hate, slides away from Ruby, turning her back to the younger girl and focuses all her attention on the champion pulling back the Relic of Knowledge. Pyrrha's hand tries to reposition and get a solid hold of the Relic as she retreats, which is when Raven's boot snaps up into her gut and knocks her away, the Relic slipping out of her grasp. Ruby's scythe pull is arrested into a firing stance, to blast a quick shot into Raven's shoulder, which works, nailing the distracted bandit leader. As she spins with the force of the shot though, Ruby sees the Relic back in place at her side, the older woman must have grabbed it and placed it back lightning fast.

Raven hurls her blade at Ruby, who can only partially deflect it, moving the hit from her sternum to just hitting her shoulder. The older woman has rushed Pyrrha again, making a hilt from ice again to make an overhand strike. The blow is fast, but highly telegraphed, and Ruby's partner raising a block with her spear… but Ruby can see the blow for what it is; a feint. Raven's other hand is at her sheath, forming another hilt of ice to draw-slash with a second Dust blade, this one cutting up Pyrrha's body before her partner can even draw in the breath necessary to warn her. Ruby runs towards them as Raven flips the grip on her second blade and brings both her odachi's back in towards the former tournament champion. The blows are blocked, a groaning sound coming from the Akouo, and then it snaps.

Pyrrha stumbles back in shock, and Raven whirls around, unable to take advantage of any openings the red reaper's partner has, forced to deal with the vengeful scythe wielder herself. A cross block with her dual blades holds off Mechanical Rose's wicked blade from descending upon her head and throws the weapon aside to strike at Ruby. The young girl catches motion from behind the ex-huntress, of Pyrrha leaping towards Raven, only to be tackled in turn out of the way by Vernal.

The scarlet cloaked girl spins her weapon around in a bunch of tight turns, deflecting the dual blades while threatening the older woman with both ends of her weapon. After the tail spike nearly scrapes her cheek, she discards one of her blades, obviously coming to the same conclusion that Ruby has. Her style doesn't work with dual blades – not to say she's bad or anything, most skilled fighters would be overwhelmed by her offensive, but against a master scythe user like herself, the openings are obvious. Her blade can be wielded one handed but it relies on the balance of her free hand, not the rhythm of a second blade, and losing the option to strike with greater speed and strength with both hands costs Raven as well, to say nothing of the length of the blades interfering with each other slightly.

As she strikes back harder, Ruby sees her smirking. A look in her anima surrounded eyes that just seems to say 'I know everything you can do, every move you'll make'. The worst part is, it seems to be right: Raven's faster, stronger, and she must have seen all of these strikes and blocks in Uncle Qrow. "How about-" she says through harsh breaths and harsher parries. "I show you something you haven't seen before?" Flicking the tail spike out on it's near invisible wire out to the side, she switches the connection over to her bracer and changes Mechanical Rose to sword form. Raven snorts, having obviously seen this before, Qrow's usual style of fighting is the blade. The youngest huntress grins, jumping up above Raven as if to make an overhand chop at her. She flies around, the obvious attack, and into Ruby's trap.

Using her Semblance to whirl around the ex-huntress, Ruby races around her in a few circles, before running out of steam and reverting back. Raven tries to bring her blade down upon the girl as she does so. Ruby pulls in her bracer, and the wires hanging in the air pull together, trapping Raven's arms in as Ruby lands. Pivoting off the ground, Ruby brings her sword down upon the shocked bandit leader, her red Aura flashing as the sword cuts across her body.

Her advantage doesn't last long, and before Ruby can land a follow up slash, Raven rockets up and over the girl. Her flight pulls the red cloaked huntress through the air, flipping and whipping her around, over the cliff edge. Ruby releases the wire connecting them, shifting her sword back to a scythe to hook the edge and leap back forward, only to meet a spinning sidekick to the face from a now freed Raven. Falling back over the edge, she Scatters, rising up as a storm of petals- forced back again by a burst of Maiden fire over the clearing's edge.

Ruby's Aura flashes from the hit as she reforms mid air, falling down disoriented for a second. Shaking the confusion out, she spots Mechanical Rose, falling out of her grip a few meters to the side. Angling herself through the sky, she falls towards it, reaching a hand out to grab the end, pulling it towards herself. Firing a few shots to slow her momentum, Ruby then digs the scythe into the mountain face. Her sweetheart makes a horrible screeching sound as it grinds against the mountain face, the thought of the damages she's done to her precious weapon as painful as the yanking force suddenly applied to her shoulders as she holds on.

Eventually Ruby comes to a halt, a few meters away from a tree and some more walkable paths, but a long ways away from the fight. Planting her feet against the mountain face, she yanks her scythe out then leaps up, using a shot to push her upwards as well as correct her course so she isn't too far away from the mountain, her blade picking into the mountain again to hold herself. She continues up in that manner, using any roots, rocky outcroppings, and judicious Semblance usage to climb back up the mountain expediently.

Cresting the cliff Ruby sees Pyrrha, beaten, cut, and bruised, valiantly still standing up to Vernal and Raven, a blade of ice in her left hand, Milo holding off Vernal's crescent blades in her right. Ruby can't tell if its her appearance distracting Pyrrha ever so minutely, or Raven simple besting the previously titled 'Invincible Girl', as her crimson odachi weaves down, slipping past Pyrrha's guard and slicing through her stomach. No Aura blocks the blow, and Dust blade cuts deep through her gut. Vernal tosses Milo to the side, shock slowly dawning on the huntress' face, and smashes a hook kick into her face. Pyrrha crashes to the ground, motionless, her blade shattering into a thousand icy shards, blood starting to pool around her.

"NO!" Ruby screams, as Raven holds her sword, point-down over Pyrrha's body. Her hand twitches as she catches sight of Ruby and she stills. The young girl takes two steps forward before stopped by the bandit leader.

"Stop." The command is simple, but the tone chilling. "If you take another step, I'll end her life." The odachi hangs straight above Pyrrha's heart, only separated by half a foot of air between them.

"What do you want?" Ruby cries out in desperation. Why is Yang's mother doing this all? How can she hope to-

"I want to know how to use the Relic." Raven's words interrupt Ruby's thoughts and she shifts her hips to show off the blue and gold lamp hanging off a cloth belt. Vernal is standing a bit off to the side looking slightly unsure (and injured, a cut along right forearm indicating that her Aura has been depleted). "I was able to pluck it from the vault easily enough but it's a lot less valuable to me without knowledge of how to use it."

The Silver Eyed warrior feels her anger rising? 'Valuable'? Pyrrha's life is on the line! "I- I don't know how to use it, so just go. Go and take your Relic and leave Pyrrha alone!" At Raven's glare she adds "If you don't I- I'll use my Silver Eyes on you!" It's a longshot, Ruby doesn't even know if they'd work on her, they only seemed to affect Grimm, and Cinder who had Grimm parts of herself (which still felt wrong and vile), but maybe they'd work on Raven. Raven at least seems to think so, her mouth turning downwards in a grimace.

"And how badly will that hurt your dear partner here? She's a Maiden as well." Raven thinks it affects Maidens as well as Grimm. Why? The confusion must show on her face because the bandit leader continues "You didn't even know how to use your legendary eyes until I helped you out." She lets out an angry breath "Enough games. Maybe I will just kill the girl, her last thoughts could have been of Vernal, and we'll get another Maiden to the tribe rather than a relic. In any case, best to get rid of the Fall Maiden as our enemy."

Raven's hand clenches around her icy hilt and Ruby stretches her hand out shouting "Wait!" Raven pauses, staring hard at the girl. "I really don't know how to use the Relic, Ozpin never told any of us."

"Figures, Oz never tells anyone enough." With a wave of her free hand a black and red portal appears a few meters ahead of her. "Go to Ozpin, tell him my terms: Either he tells me how to use the Relic, exactly, or his precious Fall Maiden will die."

There's a second that feels like it's frozen, as if she's being stretched out by the strands of destiny (very far back in her mind, she notes that must be Pyrrha rubbing off on her if she sees it like that). If she helps Raven… she'll be giving magica- even more, magical power to a vicious, violent, thug. A murderess and thief, Ruby has no idea how this woman could have been her mom's partner, her dad's wife, how she could be connected to her family at all. There's a part of her that wants to remove this blight from her family line, to strike now and refuse to give her power that she might use to cause untold disasters in the future.

But there's a large part of her, tugging her eyes downwards to the prone form of her partner. Pyrrha. A wonderful girl, energetic, strong, and caring. She had taken quite a bit of pain after Beacon and losing her old partner, but Ruby had seen starting to pull herself back together. Ruby had her fair share of pain there, losing Penny and Jaune. Maybe, a Ruby Rose from before those days would defend all of humanity and faunus kind from the unknown evils Raven could bring. But this girl, this Ruby wants to spend more days with her beautiful, vibrant partner. She can't bear to watch the life slip away from her body, so she runs into the portal.

She finds herself in a room in the school Yang standing at the doorway, throwing out a few shots, before resting her hand against it's frame. Qrow is behind her, groggily waking up from the bench he's on (a sight that would fill her with delight any other time). "Yang, where's Ozpin?" The yellow haired huntress turns around, befuddled, but Ruby doesn't even wait for her answer rushing to the doorway, looking for Ozpin. "Ozpin! Ozpin, where are you?"

Her words get the wizard's attention, and he pokes his head up to face her, still keeping one eye on the large man he'd fighting. Ruby rushes forward, blasting ahead with her Semblance and carrying him with her, turning him into bunch of petals alongside her and returning back inside, to the complete confusion of pretty much everyone in the fight against the large man (and him too, though from his rage filled shouts of Ozpin's name it seems like that quickly turned to anger).

"Miss Rose, if your Uncle is-" Ozpin's words stop as he collects himself, noticing Qrow and the portal beside him. "What are you-?"

"No time" Ruby shrieks, her entire frame quivering with fear. Pyrrha's going to die if you don't tell Raven how to use the Relic."

Ozpin's face falls, before becoming stony. "That is unfortunate, but I can't let feelings get in the way. I know you- you care for the girl, but-" His face contorts a few times, as if he's struggling with the words from the pain Ruby is feeling. "We can't just- listen here, you have no idea-!" His head twitches back and forth a few times before Oscar's eyes snap towards Ruby (even before he speaks, she somehow knows in that moment that it's him). "Her name is Jinn! The entity in the Relic, it has two questions left and you say her name to- argh!" He falls down to one knee, holding himself up partially with his cane as the two souls in his body fight for control.

Ruby nods her head once, ignoring her sister and uncle shouting out to her and goes back through the portal, skidding to a stop at the sight of Raven's blade moving closer to Pyrrha. "Well?"

"Her name is Jinn! The Relic's name, or the thing living in the Relic. Anyways, you say her name and you get two questions!" She breathes in and out quickly, almost hyperventilating at everything that's happened. Raven narrows her eyes, pulling the Relic off her belt, letting it grow in size as she holds it out before her.

"Jinn" she nearly whispers, and at the softly spoken word, the lamp glows, trying to rise away from Raven's grip, though she keeps it close, her eyes darting about, unwilling to give up her prize but fearful of a trap. No trap is sprung, though the lamp itself turns into cloud of teal-blue gas before coalescing into the form of a large, inhuman human, floating in the air. A few gold chains and accessories hang off of her otherwise naked body, looking to be the same color of the golden handles that were on the lamp. She stretches her arms into the air, as if waking up after a long nap.

"My, this is a pleasure" she says, looking around.

Raven gulps before looking eyes with Jinn, careful speaking. "Tell me your name, purpose and abilities."

The magical creature looks bemused "Well, well, aren't you the crafty one. Not a question in there, just a rude demand. Still, I suppose I can let this one pass so you know how to call on me properly in the future. Do not expect I will let you get free answers with this method, however." Raven's head dips slightly to show that she understands, and she moves her sword away from Pyrrha's body.

"My name is Jinn, I was created by the god of light, to give knowledge to the world. I know all things in the land, though I can't predict the future. Every century I can answer three questions, and you're in luck, as I still have two questions remaining." Raven's eyes gleam at the possibilities, and her lips press together as she calculates what she can do with this power.

Ruby edges forward, testing any reaction from before grabbing Pyrrha's body, and pulling her away. Vernal moves, as if to attack, but holds off at Raven's raised hand. "Let them be, we have more important matters to deal with. Like a talk, with my brother and daughter. Let's go" she says, walking to the portal, before stiffly adding a "Please" to Jinn as they head to Haven.

Ruby barely hears any of that however, too focused on Pyrrha as she races down the mountain, straining her soul as much as she can to take her partner down fast. Whatever pain such effort could cause her is nothing compared to losing her partner. "C'mon Pyrrha, hold on" she says, desperately descending, hoping that she can find help in time to save her partner's life.

A/N: Another chapter down, and one that ties together most everything that's happened thus far. There's still a few chapters to go before the end of the arc, but we're almost there. Unfortunately, I'm not going to be able to finish them for a bit. November will be too busy for me with NaNoWriMo, so I'm likely to get those ones done some time in December, at which point I'll be taking an actual hiatus to deal with other writing projects.


	37. Chapter 37 - Mistakes

Chapter 37 - Mistakes

Raven steps through the portal with Vernal close behind her, entering a room in Haven Academy, just outside she can hear the sounds of fighting going on, but she focuses on the figures in the room. Her daught- Yang. Qrow, lying on a bench, struggling to get up on his good arm, the other one heavily bandaged and soaked in his own blood (she makes sure to not let a sign of it show, but some part of her feels relieved to see that he's alive, even if she knows that just means she might be fighting him again soon – hopefully she can get him to see the truth of things now). And Ozpin, in his new body. The kid he's inhabiting, his clothes would make him look like a farmhand, but Raven's red eyes catch on his posture, and his cane. The stance is so familiar she almost expects to hear her old headmaster's voice coming from the child. Instead, it's a young boy's voice, full of more venom, anger, and tiredness than anyone that young sounding should be able to manage.

"Raven" is all he says from the doorway, glaring at her. The glare turns to fear as after Vernal, the whispy mists that make up Jinn flow through the portal and reform within the school, the floating blue lady gathering everyone's attention.

Jinn looks upon the group and as she reforms she says "That was… quite the unusual experience. Usually when I pass through portals it's as a lamp." She looked around and caught Ozpin's eye, instantly realizing who it was. "It's good to see you again old man." The wizard just snapped his focus back to Raven.

"This is almost a lovely little reunion 'family' reunion. A shame we're missing some members" Raven says, carefully controlling what she says. Nothing like a question, not even sarcastic ones; she doesn't know what Jinn will count as a question, and she wants to make her question here count.

"Why are you here?" Raven turns to look at the child she bore, and upon second glance, she can see that the girl is quite beat up. Nothing serious yet, not like the injury that caused her to lose an arm, but bruised and battered to say the least. "And where's Ruby?!" That question garners some anger, Yang's eyes flickering red with rage as she considers the possibilities, before flickering back (the anger hasn't gone, but the Tell disappearing let's Raven know that she's out of aura completely, or close to it).

"I suppose I am looking to give you some answers. Ruby's fine, she ran off to help her partner." On the bandit chief's last word, hurt flashes across Yang's eyes. What pain happened involving her partner? As far as Raven's sources had told her, Miss Belladona was reported as living through the Battle of Beacon. Something to look into later, Raven made a note of.

"Raven, you have no idea what you're doing, give me-" She cuts off Ozpin before she has to hear him prattle further (if anything his lectures sound even more annoying now that they're coming from the voice of a small boy).

"If I don't know enough, then it's because you kept us in the dark. Sending us out into danger, feeding us whatever little tidbits you felt like. Wh- I don't know how you justified that to yourself, but I won't let it continue."

"You won't let it continue?" Yang asks incredulously. "Like you have any room to talk about doing bad things, you're a bandit leader. A monster!"

"I saved your life!" Raven spits back in response, directed you and your friend to Ozpin and his merry band of fools, and wha- and you repayed me by attacking your camp!" Another slip up, far too close, Raven thinks as she sees a twinkle in Jinn's eyes. She hardens herself and focuses; just a bit further into this conversation, and she'll be ready to use her question.

"And kidnapping and using me" Vernal faithfully chimes in beside her. "I mean, I played you all, but that doesn't negate the fact that you would have captured or killed me if I hadn't done so."

"Enough" Qrow growls out. "What right do you have to come here accusing us of being the bad guys?"

"I'm not, it's Ozpin that-" He cuts off her retort.

"You left, because of your cowardice."

"Because I was smart enough to survive! Because our father-" She cuts herself off. It doesn't matter, that might have been part of it, but why she stayed… that was all her desire to escape Ozpin's games (and if it made her ex-partner and husband happy, leaving the way for them to be together too, well that was just a bonus).

"No, you can't just leave it there! What was up with our father? Did something happen-"

"You left! You don't get to question it. You made your choice, to work for Ozpin and slave after him, I chose our family!" She realizes that this is getting heated, which could work against her, but she can't help it. It's also needed for what comes next, even if Jinn is rolling her eyes at it all. Vernal also seems unimpressed with her arms crossed as they bicker, which Raven had thought she'd taught the girl to understand her moves better than this, that she has a plan even if she seems emotional (sometimes showing emotion is key to it).

Ozpin slams his cane into the ground "Raven." The boy is glaring at her, but she can see, even with his presence and battle ready stance, that boy is running on fumes. He must have been fighting for a long time, in a body he's unused to. "Give me the relic, you have no ideas the power it has. Ruby should have never-"

"She saved her friend, of course you're against it. You see us as all disposable in your fight against Salem, not that she's any better."

"What will you do now? Do you think you can keep it from her clutches? You'll get yourself killed, and I know how much you value your own life." He spits out the last part like it's an insult, which enrages Raven.

"I think I just did take it from her, as well as you. Bested her minions and your own. If you think I can't hold onto Jinn so easily…" she pauses for a second, planning out her next words. "Then try and take her from me." No one makes a move, each of the three she's arguing with glance at each other. Vernal shifts slightly, the stance letting Raven know that her Aura is low, but her right hand woman is still ready and able to fight. The look in Qrow's eyes… it's fear. He's afraid of her (which might be the smartest thing he's ever felt, but she wishes it wasn't true). Raven doesn't look at Yang, not sure she'd want to see what's there

The sounds of fighting outside are starting to die down, and Yang speaks up. "So you win. Congratulations" she says, brokenly. "Just leave with your prize then, you won't convinces us that any mistake Ozpin has made is worse-"

"You have no idea what he's done! Even I barely know his misdeeds, and I worked for him longer than you! I doubt even my brother has been brought in on all his secrets!" Raven shouts, wondering how she could be the only one who sees this. "What's every mistake he's ever made? That list alon-" She catches herself as she realizes what she's said, and Jinn's eyes light up.

She's worried, furious with herself, panicking, and trying to plan everything out in the course of a second. She realizes it might still work, the wording is close to what she was going for anyways. "Your wish-"

"Please, tell us all" Raven interrupts, hoping the spirit will have mercy on her, that the Relic works this way. If Yang and Qrow hear it from her, they'll doubt, but if the spirit can inform them too, then maybe, just maybe, she could get her brother and daughter back.

"-Is my command." And then suddenly everything is in a white void, and Raven is all alone. Then she hears Jinn's voice as a world starts to build around her, detailing scenes from the past…

Though Raven doesn't know it, these scenes play out for all of those nearby, showing them Ozpin's past. It starts with the God of Light explaining how the humans have been destroyed, and that he's tasking Ozma with the task of guarding the four Relics… and what will happen to the world if they are ever gathered together without all people's being united. They watch and see Ozma brought back, and how he 'reunites' with her. Salem, the 'love of his lives'.

The wizard watches, feeling the shame of his past as he sees the old him forget about his promise to the God of Light, and wonders what could have been, if he'd have followed his promise to the God more thoroughly, or conversely, if he had trusted Salem more and just decided to work with her openly from the start instead of keeping his mission a secret. He shunts aside those thoughts, knowing better than to long for a different past.

He may not have a real heart in this mental vision, but he still feels a pang of pain in his chest when he sees his daughters again, the night he tried to take them away. Their battle plays out as he remembers it, but after a certain point of their magical duel, the angle shifts slightly, making him wonder what's going on, before he realizes the horrible truth when he sees one of his daughters, Spring, separated from him in the fighting, and then huddled by a tower. The top of the tower was then hit by a bolt of green energy, energy which the wizard knows came from his staff, and what must be the result, not that the vision doesn't show him it all over again, in excruciating detail. He tries to turn his head, but the vision simply shifts around to match. He tries to close his eyes, but the vision is still there, instead of the peaceful darkness he wishes for. This isn't a physical body he's in or a movie he can turn away from, but a vision; the knowledge is inescapable no matter how much he longs for it to be otherwise.

He finds he can collapse to his knees as the combatants keep talking, unaware of the blood pooling out from the rubble that used to be a tower in their castle. Ozma screams out denials, rejections of this, but he knows this, more than any other fact in the world must be true. He hadn't known who's exact fault it was, for all of their children's deaths, though Salem's magic could be blamed for at least Winter's death, and he had suspected for the rest of them too. But here was proof – proof that he had killed his daughter.

The scenes shifted, following Ozma throughout his many reincarnations. Yang looks at all the different lives, so much different information. But all of it's bad. Different degrees of bad, sometimes little bad things, like him slipping up in a fight or forgetting a birthday. Other times it was bigger things, 'incidents' where he mishandled leading a region or tribe (Nations and groups Yang had never heard of before, and while she wasn't a history buff, Yang actually did pretty well at school while she was there, making her wonder how far back this all went), or forgetting to protect people when he was busy with research or other projects.

Sometimes it was the small things that led into the bad things. Ozpin (Ozma really, or Osken as he was called in that life, but Yang was finding it hard to remember him under all the different names and tended to default back to the one she had first heard for the man) was in a fight against the Grimm, keeping his magic a secret, and an accident led to that incarnation's younger brother, Mordrin, who fought alongside him, being badly hurt. The brother lost an arm, and there were no fancy prosthetics for Ozpin's brother (whether from the time or if the family was poor, Yang didn't know, the details behind his mistakes weren't always there, but Ozpin's staff didn't have any shifting technology, just carved out of wood with slots for Dust gems in it).

The two of them got into more arguments after that, started separating as 'Ozpin' became more and more the dominant force of the man's mind. Eventually, Ozpin's secret was revealed, and the two argued a bit, but eventually reconciled, with the promise that "No more secrets would be held between them." Yang already knew that it was a pile of garbage, Ozpin hadn't told his 'brother' half the things he had told them, and these visions were revealing even more secrets he had kept from them. She's not surprised when the visions move to showing Mordrin learning the truth, separating from Ozpin and prying deeper. It skips ahead again to show Mordrin in a shadowy tower, looking down upon a legion of soldiers. He turned around at a noise and saw Ozpin, floating outside another window frame.

The younger man turned and said "thou shouldn't have come here, brother, for now I know the truth. And my mistress has granted me more than just the secrets thou cruelly denied me, but the power to defeat thou as well!" As he made his declaration, Mordrin stepped out of the shadows, revealing a huge arm of darkness and Grimm (like the one Cinder had, though different in size, Yang notes) and swung the arm towards Ozpin. Ozpin caught the blow on his staff and was pushed back for a second before rallying his magic and blasting Mordrin back across the room with a powerful gust of wind. He floated inside the building and slammed his staff on the ground and green circle of energy spread out from it, washing over Ozpin harmlessly, but paralyzing his brother's limbs (even the Grimm one, encasing it in further green energy than the others).

"Give up. If thou turns back-"

Mordrin spits "There is no turning back. Or hast thou not yet seen what happened to our dearest parents?" He cackled and Ozpin ground his teeth together. With a twist of the wizard's hands, he telekinetically tore his brother apart. He seemed to regret it, or at least how fast he had gone to fratricide, a second later but the deed was done.

Blake sees the visions whirl by as well, and she wonders what has caused this, what's happening. The picture it paints of Ozp- Ozma's lives, is not a pretty one. He has caused, or let happen, so much destruction. So much death. The black haired girl has no idea why or how this is happening, but she can tell it looks bad.

Too bad, like someone is only showing the worst of what he's done. It's hard for her to keep focus on that, to continue believing in Ozpin, especially when she saw him sacrificing a battalion of faunus soldiers that he led, for an attempt to retake ground from Salem that led nowhere. She knows that if Adam was seeing this too, he certainly would never forgive that slight, regardless of the own horrors he's committed. Blake wonders what Ilia will think, knowing how tenuous things are between them, how much is still unsaid in their relationship and how her old friend has only just rejoined her. The huntress hopes that Ilia will give him the benefit of the doubt, however.

She hopes that, because Blake knows well how these images don't cover the whole story. She's enough of a bibliophile to see the obvious gaps, to recognize the threats Ozma has had to fight and see how many victories aren't counted in these mistakes. She also knows that while her own life has been far shorter than a reincarnating wizard's, it could be taken out of context and displayed in a manner that made her seem like the worst of villains, so Blake holds on to hope that he isn't as bad as all this made him seen.

She also hopes, eventually, that someone will explain what in Remnant's name is going on.

Weiss sees Ozpin, standing as a king, surveying his kingdom, ravaged by war- no, by the Grimm. The man stands, armed at this point with a staff now very similar to the one she'd seen from his days at Beacon, it clenched so tightly in his hands that his knuckles are white as he looks on the devastation. He stands dressed in a sharp grey suit, with a white cloak on his back matching the white crown resting atop his head.

Weiss feels something nagging at her mind about this scene and her thoughts are proven correct when she hears an advisor from behind him say "Your majesty, there was nothing you could do to save Grimbol." She remembers the 'Devestation of Grimbol' being a turning point for something in the history books, but what was it?

"I should have been able to. My power, it's been spread out so far, and while I've done good with it, I haven't been able to protect those close to me."

"Sire? We needed to have your troops on the boarders, with tensions rising in the other kingdoms, and you pulled back the forces you had quickly to respond. Already, your soldiers are putting out the fires and driving out the Grimm." The advisor is a little confused, thinking that Ozpin is talking about his armies, but Weiss realizes the truth; Ozpin's talking about the magic he gave away to the Maidens, how if he had it then he could have saved Grimbol.

Oddly enough, she notices that throughout the scenes of his life that have suddenly flashed into her mind mid fight with the brute called Hazel, they never saw him giving up his magic to the four Maidens. Weiss is certain it happened though, Ozpin's magic was displayed quite prominently in the beginning, but those displays mostly went away after a certain point (though his skills as a huntsman have remained incredible).

King!Ozpin just sighed and said nothing, looking down at the ruined town. The advisor stepped beside him and tried to placate him "There was simply nothing to be done, the people of Grimbol were too…" The man is obviously searching for a negative word, but not one that speaks too poorly of the dead. "Emotional" he settles on.

"They were colorful. Vibrant! What was- what is wrong with that?" King!Ozpin sharply asks, turning his head a fraction away from the town and towards the advisor. The many starts at the question, but composes himself well.

"Call it what you will, their colorfulness doomed them. They lived with such emotions that they drew the Grimm to their presence. More than once their rowdiness and antics had been noticed, but it was overlooked for their festivals and 'celebrations'."

"Positivity never drew the Grimm in" the wizard said slowly, turning to face his advisor now.

"No, they don't, but the negativity does, and those great heights of positive emotion can't be reached without the negative swinging back. And that just invites the Grimm, and death. All because they wanted to hang up their 'colorful' banners and streamers. That, your majesty, is why I say they brought this upon themselves." The advisor stated his words firmly, but respectfully, his head slightly bowed in deference to Ozpin.

Weiss took a step back (not that it mattered or changed how she saw the scene) as she realized what this was. This was the beginning, the seeds of the Great War, of…

Ozpin took the words in and looked back on the town. "A colorless kingdom" he muttered. "If there were no emotions, no hate, no love, nothing that could be twisted to her ends, none of her vile creatures able to see us. If we could all be united…" His voice trailed off as he remembered that he wasn't alone, and the advisor was looking at him oddly for his sudden muttering. "Ah, thank you, I'm sure I'll be fine, you've just given me some interesting ideas."

Qrow saw hopelessness. From the impossible quest (and the terrible repercussions for failure) given by the God of Light, to Salem's immortality, to every failure and mistake that Ozma made. More than just failure – pointlessness. The world was doomed and Ozpin, the man that he had given the majority of his life to, the man he had served, heart and soul for over twenty years.

"What have I been doing?" Qrow questions, but Jinn doesn't answer. Not directly anyways, but as he sees Ozpin, the actual Ozpin, in his office, he gets his answer.

Ozpin looked at reports on a screen, of some worring rumors of a Grimm attack-

-No. No no no no no. Ozpin had promised! He had sworn he had no clue that that mission was anything other than a milk run! Qrow is shocked, and surprised that he can find it in himself to be shocked at the man after everything he's learned was kept hidden from him, but this betrayal cuts deep.

"Miss Rose" Ozpin speaks pleasantly on his scroll as the recipient picks up.

"Ozpin! It's been a while, and hey, I told you to call me Summer now. I'm not your student any longer." Summer Rose's voice comes through the other end, striking through Qrow's heart like a lance to hear her again.

"Forgive me, Summer, I think I'll tend to see you all as my students, even now. How's Taiyang?"

"He's doing-" she cuts off her automatic response and thinks about it for a moment before answering sincerely. "He's doing better, a lot better. It's been tough on all of us, since Raven left. Do you have any idea where she is?"

Ozpin's eyes glance over at a story from Mistral: 'Branwen Bandits Strike Again! Branwen Tribe Resurgence after a Decade.' "No, I'm afraid I haven't been able to find her. Unfortunately, most of my efforts have been dedicated to Salem and the Grimm at present" he smoothly lies.

"I understand" Summer said, dutifully. "I take it this isn't a social call then?"

"You'd be correct, I've heard of a few disturbances a few dozen miles north of where you are, and I hoped you'd be able to help deal with the minor Grimm problem there."

"Sure thing!" Summer said with a chipper tone, eager to help. Qrow cursed, begged her to stop, to realize that Ozpin was playing her, but of course, his voice could do nothing to change the past.

"Is it big enough that I should call Qrow and my husband in for this? I can get a sitter for the girls. Speaking of which, you have to see them some time, I'm sure Ruby would love you."

"Just Ruby?" He questioned, half teasingly.

"Yang too, of course. Ruby just seems to love hunters so much, I know she'd be glad to meet my teacher. Wait, does this mean you'll actually come down to Patch then?"

"Yes, I think I should be able to make some time in my schedule to visit some time this month. Like you've said, it's been too long. As for backup…" he glanced down at a file folder on his desk marked 'Silver Eyes'. "Don't worry about it, you should be able to handle it on your own."

She agreed to do it, saying she'd 'be back in time for dinner'. The only promise she ever broke. Ozpin hung up and looked back at his files, on ways to unlock the power of a Silver Eyed Warrior. "I certainly hope so" he said before the scene faded away.

Tin Foxglove (often called 'tiny tinny, much to his displeasure), a goat faunus, has no clue what is going on anymore. The attack on Haven had been going poorly, tons of hunters had shown up to stop them, but the new Supreme Leader was determined to fight, and so Tin fought!... Right before the vision and this weird lady's voice appeared in his head narrating some of the events, he had been facing down a young huntress with a pair of maces.

Given how long, and mostly coherent this all was, Tin is starting to wonder if he really is dying after getting brained by a huntress, or at least if it could hurry things up. It finally looks like they're getting to modern day stuff though, with Ozpin talking to General Ironwood.

Tin doesn't really 'get' what it they're talking about, but it involved something on transferring 'Maidenhood' from Amber, onto the next 'guardian'. How does one transfer being a maiden? You either are a young girl or you aren't, right?

Tin has no clue, but the underground chamber they go down to (under Beacon Academy? He doesn't remember any of their cells raiding a place like that when they attacked Beacon) looks eerie. At the end of the hallway is a machine, two giant pods, one empty and one with a cute (for a human) girl inside it who looks injured.

"No James, they need a bit more time, time to be children, to grow and develop. Putting that much pressure on them when they're young… I've seen it go wrong in the past." Ozpin said, looking forlornly at the girl.

General 'James' Ironwood looked reluctant. "They are, but they are also warriors too. I'm certain if no one at your academy can hand- is ready for this burden, I can find a suitable candidate at my school."

"Thank you for your opinion of my teaching methods, James."

"Oz, I didn't mean-"

Ozpin waved him off "It's fine. I have plenty of potential guardians to choose from, as do you. We both know many brave, determined, young women. But this power… even for those who do not turn away, it can be a terrible burden. Please don't ask me to see it passed over so soon. I know what is at stake, but I also know how well we are doing. The world is at peace right now, and I'll make sure that our guardian is chosen by the time she's needed. Do you trust me?"

"Always" Ironwood responded. And though the both looked confident and proud, Tin saw the flames of destruction flickering to life around them as the scene shifted, showing the Battle of Beacon.

Ironwood was no longer standing, but on his back, knocked down and surrounded by Grimm. Ozpin was fighting – that woman! The one that Adam made deals with before, Cindy something? Her eyes were blazing and she was fighting Ozpin. Tin saw her then kill Ozpin, with a blast of fire leaving nothing behind but his cane, which fell to the ground.

Was this vision saying that the Battle of Beacon was Ozpin's fault? It was there's, the White Fang had caused that to happen! Tin was angry for a moment, before he saw the vision move over to show the people hurt by their attack. The citizens cowering. Tin doesn't feels too bad about it, knowing how much 'seemingly harmless' humans have hurt faunus in the past, but when he sees the children hurt, the other faunus in the city… he starts to feel a little less proud of their attack.

Reality came crashing back to everyone after the visions ended, the motions that they had been through right as the vision washed over them jerkily carried through as physics set back in (their heads at least, physically nothing had changed with their bodies, even with how long the vision took). Hazel's body crashed through the front wall of the room Raven and the others were in, the force bringing most of that side down. Dust empowered blasts and shots went off wildly, weapons clattered to the ground, dropped or knocked out of people's hands and then everything fell silent (save for the crumbling apart of buildings and structures still damaged by the last attacks).

Tinny breaks the silence first "What the fu-" and pandemonium of questions, crying, and demands spring up around the courtyard of Haven as students, terrorists, and hunters try to make sense of everything they've just seen.

A/N: Wow it's been a while hasn't it? Well, with my NaNoWriMo done I'm ready to move on to getting this arc wrapped up. This chapter fought with me a bit, but I should be able to finish the next two chapters in a couple of days. As always I hope you enjoyed it and if you have any comments, reviews, or questions, leave them bellow, thanks.


	38. Chapter 38 - Fallout

Chapter 38 – Fallout

People are exclaiming, clutching their heads and wondering what's going on, and almost everyone is trying to comprehend what just happened. The hunters and the White Fang members that had been fighting are all frozen in indecision while trying to sort out these visions, warily eyeing the people they had been fighting just seconds ago. Neither side is will to make a violent move, to trigger the continuation of battle while everything is so disorganized, but they're all worried about someone else starting.

Raven keeps an eye on Hazel as he dazedly picks himself up from the wall he crashed through (and to Jinn, returning to lantern form back at her side), but otherwise directs her attention towards Qrow and Yang. "Do you understand now? Do you see how many people he's sacrificed, and for nothing?!" Even-"

Her voice catches up, but her brother picks up for her, marching forward and picking up Oscar, slamming the young boy into what remains of the walls around them. He uses his good arm, but Qrow still winces in pain at the effort, not that he lets it deter him. "You sacrificed Summer! How could you? All for… what? Nothing, Salem can't be beaten anyways." He dropped the boy "Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

Looking up at Qrow, Oscar says "I don't- he's gone. He locked himself away after the visions, I can't reach Ozpi- Ozma." Out of everyone, Oscar looks the most shocked at these revelations.

Raven speaks up, her volume loud so that's she sure to be heard over the others. "Come back to me, Brother, Daughter" she says, turning to Qrow and Yang in turn. "We can be a family together in the tribe, away from Ozpin and Salem and their games."

"Wait a moment…" Hazel starts to say as he brushes himself off, only to be blasted away by a magical burst of wind from Raven, knocking him (and some bricks from what was left of the wall) back outside where he had been fighting before.

"No waiting. I won't listen to you entreat on your Dark Queen's behalf, nor can you or any of her minions challenge me. I am Raven Branwen, Spring Maiden, and my tribe, the Branwen Bandit tribe will be safe from any of Salem's or Ozpin's minions!" She strides forward, eyes blazing with anima, daring anyone to prove her wrong. No one does.

Blake is standing beside Ilia, with Sun off a little bit to the distance, her weapon pointed at Adam. In the confusion he had managed to get up and grab his weapons, making a bit of distance between them before Blake could stop him.

"See this! These visions have showed us how terrible Ozpin can be. He's been oppressing our kind for centuries, but with Salem's help-"

"Don't listen to him!" Blake interrupts. "That wasn't what the visions showed at all, they showed a man in dire straights… who made some bad choices." She looks out at all the masked faces before her, all the people she called brothers and sisters not so long ago. Most of them look battered from the fighting that just happened, many are injured or just being roused out of unconsciousness, all are confused and scared. "I know I've done the same, but it's not to late to change things. We can be better, support our rights without this violence, together. This isn't what the White Fang has to stand for." She casts a glance at Ilia, and the chameleon faunus tentatively nods her head, and clasps Blake's hands with her own.

Before Ilia can step forward and say something to support her friend, Tin shouts out "Screw you, Adam!" Before Blake's heart can soar to high with hope he dashes it by turning to her and saying "And you too Blake!"

Tin tears off his White Fang mask and tosses it to the ground "Adam, you killed the high leader and just made yourself the new one, and while we thought you were making change, you were just begging off scraps from some- some human witch controlling the Grimm. And Blake abandoned us and wants us to play nice with the humans who beat us? Who steal our possessions, our rights, our dignity? Screw that, I'm out."

Right after he says that, Raven blows out part of the wall, causing several to point their weapons at her, everyone still too afraid to make a move against the might she seemed to carry with her. At her declaration, Tin moves up and says "And how do faunus get treated in your tribe."

She looks at him, with the same moderate surprise one might have if a bug decided to talk to them, but recovers quickly, evenly saying "The same as anyone else: The strong survive and the weak die. That's the moto of the Branwen tribe, race doesn't matter."

Tin looks around at his fellows and says "Then count me in, I'm strong."

After an appraising gaze she says "Prove it" and conjures a glowing black portal beside her. "Go through, and join your new family, the Branwen Tribe."

Tin gulps, but steps through quickly, disappearing into the gloom. Raven whispers a few words to Vernal and she steps in after, leaving just Raven waiting.

She isn't waiting for longer than a second for more White Fang members to join Tin, discarding their masks to join the tribe. Blake sees Adam calling them out as cowards, trying to rally some back to his side (and getting a few of them too), with the big human that Raven blasted moving to stand by him.

Ilia calls out to the others, imploring them on moral values, for a better future, and she sees some who discard their masks turn away from the Spring Maiden. Her friend calls out faunus by name, and asks them to join their side, against the evils of this world, and many come. Lines are being formed, Adam's side backing towards the Bulkhead at the end of courtyard, Ilia and Blake's group closer to the building, and the rest funneling away to the portal. Sun appears to be having similar arguments with the students of Haven, mostly on the other side of where Raven stands.

Blake adds her words to the group, shows more of the White Fang the right side, but eventually a streak of yellow catches her attention. Yang, walking towards Raven. She says to Ilia "I'm sorry, there's someone I need to talk to." Then she hurries off, moving through the people to get to her old partner.

An older man who seems to have the same eyes as the bandit leader (the same eyes as her partner when she's mad), steps through the portal fully revealing Yang behind him, their eyes locking. Yang trades glances with Raven and says something Blake can't fully hear, before she steps forward, past the portal to meet her. Blake moves closer too, standing a dozen feet apart when she says "Yang."

Yang watched her mother make that statement to the fighters, who then started to join the bandit tribe. She's still reeling from everything they had seen when Oscar picks himself up off the ground to look at Qrow and Yang. "Please, don't-"

"You-" Qrow cuts himself off. "I've got no clue whether you're actually Ozpin or not. I gave my life to that man, and now I'm taking it back." He starts walking towards his sister before turning back and saying "For what's its worth kid, I'm sorry for ya. I know what it's like to have bad luck, and what you've got to deal with might just be the worst hand imaginable." His tone is low, and he shoots Oscar a pitying look before he walks past him.

Yang follows him, stopping besides Oscar/Ozma, and looks at him in the eyes, seeing eyes as red as her mother's reflected back at her. "I don't know if he'll ever hear this message, but Ozpin, or Ozma, or whatever should know; I gave him a chance. I told him we'd work together if there were no more lies, and it looks like that's all I've got." She glances over at Qrow and Raven talking. It's quiet, unhearable over the din and arguments going on all around, but there seems to be some happiness between them, family again. "Well, I have them too. Goodbye."

Raven is letting anyone walk into the portal, and Yang sees that a bunch of them are. Mostly former White Fang members, but some student hunters are walking into it as well. Nora and Ren are standing by the still encased in ice Atlesian Doctor. They're discussing something in low tones, back and forth, but they seem to be staying. Something looks off about them, somehow, but her attention is taken away by Blake getting closer to her as she gets closer to Raven.

"…It will be good to have you back in the tribe brother" the yellow brawler catches Raven saying to Qrow.

He shrugs, but in a way that anyone who's known him a long time can tell, means he's happy. "We'll see how you feel after I've been around for a few weeks." The remark is half-joking, half-serious, but Raven replies with complete sincerity.

"I wouldn't trade you for all the bad luck in the world. It- you will always be welcome in our tribe." Jeez mom, you can just say you've missed him, Yang thinks to herself. She knows she'd question it more (especially calling Raven 'mom', even in her head, when that term had always been reserved for Summer), but then Qrow has stepped into the portal and across from her Blake is there, her golden eyes boring into Yang's lilac ones.

Raven is surveying all the people leaving the war torn courtyard, but Yang can see her keeping a wary eye on the black clad huntress moving towards her. "I've got this" Yang says to her. Her mother nods slightly, and Yang moves past her to meet Blake, and once she can't see Raven, the bandit leader speaks.

"I lo- I know you will do great, my daughter." The words make Yang's feet catch as she hears them, and the brilliant beauty jerkily nods her head.

She stops a dozen feet away from her old partner, crossing her arms. From the girl that left her without a trace, months ago, only to return now when Yang least expected it. When she had thought that she'd be done with the black haired cat faunus for good. Her voice is ragged when she says "Blake" at the same time as her partner says her own name.

Weiss looks over the whole former? battlefield. No one seemed to be fighting now, but everyone was ready. The ex-heiress couldn't blame them, especially when she saw Ozpin standing in the ruined school building, silently looking at them all. She was tempted to drive her rapier through his throat, not that it would do any good (also, she was very out of aura, having switched places with Ozpin after the fighting with Hazel got rough- well, rougher, and they needed her help to try and deal with the brute).

She looked at her dirtied, and somewhat bloodied, outfit and state of appearance, which would usually make her stick out like a sore thumb, but here she fit right in, ghosting through the different groups until she stopped at the students of Haven. Everyone was shouting, but the people here seemed even more spirited than the impassioned speeches on either side of the White Fang (Blake may have been back and helped them, but it really seemed like she was back with those terrorists, even if not on the side her ex-boyfriend/the bull who maimed Yang).

"We need to protect Mistral, now more than ever!" Arslan bellowed.

"Who's going to protect us!?" Reese shouted back. "All the adults got killed off by Ozpin and/or Lionheart."

"Yeah, we're just students after all, we aren't ready for this!" Another student added his voice to hers.

"And who will save the people from the Grimm? All this hatred, anger, and pain, it's sure to draw them in" a rabbit faunus boy reasoned, not that his reasoning was well received.

"Who cares? I need to protect myself and if they're smart, they'll do the same! Viridian, you're always saying about how I have to focus on what's 'logical' and now you're the one being irrational. With Raven we'd be safe." Viridian's teammate countered.

"So you'd turn to banditry to live? You'd be worse than Ozma for that!" Viridian spits out. Even more complaints spring up at his comment, people arguing overtop of each other.

Neptune calls out "People, please! We can be better than this, let's calm down, talk things out reasonably." His words don't manage to sway them, with some students drifting further away, closer to the portal while casting worried glances at it, wondering when their ticket out of there will close.

Teams are arguing with each other, shouting, crying, everything. Unconscious or incoherent teammates are sometimes held in a tug of war between the other members as they wonder which side to go on. A very few looked towards Hazel, obviously wondering what could be offered by Salem, how safe her side was, even if it involved the Grimm. The only team that seems united is Team SSSN, Sun joining them through the crowds of White Fang in the way.

Weiss looked at it all, knew that she should- should say something. She had the voice for it, could carry her words over the entire shouting group. She raised her hand, cleared her throat… her hand fell, she remained silent. After everything they had seen, after learning Ozpin had yet again lied to them, her heart wasn't in it.

Sun stepped forward "Everyone, QUIET!" His screech drew everyone's attention. "I know, we got hit with a lot, I know. But we are stronger than this. I get being afraid, I'm scared too, but I know that running away doesn't help. I have a friend, and she tried to run from her fear, but it followed her. It will consume us if we let it, but we don't have to!" He draws his staff from his back causing everyone to tense up for a moment before he simply marks a line in the ground in front of him.

"We've gotta fight the fear, the pain, the hate. Draw a line against them and not give an inch. Our teachers are gone, or we can't trust them, fine, I'll fight anyways. Because I'm a Hunter. It doesn't matter to me whether or not I graduated yet, or if I'm 'allowed' to flee because I'm young enough. I signed up knowing I was always going to fight the Grimm and protect the people from bad guys. Who's with me?"

Automatically, his team steps up as one behind him. The other students start calming down, more of them moving over past his line… but some are not. Some plant their feet defiantly and look towards the people moving through the portal. Weiss follows their gaze and sees- Blake and Yang?! She moves over to them.

Her two friends are talking, though it doesn't look pleasant, Weiss realizes as she stands just to the side and in-between them.

"So. You're back" Yang coldly states.

"Don't do this. It's- it's wrong." Blake says, her hand outstretched to her old partner.

"Do we know that anymore" Weiss surprises herself by speaking up. "After everything we saw, what Ozpin did and kept from us, I don't know…"

"Yang, stay here, with us. It's confusing but-"

"Stay? Like you stayed when I needed you most!?" Blake cringes her ears folding back at Yang's accusation.

"This isn't you, don't go joining that woman-"

"Isn't it? I've found my mother, and it looks like you're back with your family too." Yang cuts off any denials from Blake, turning her back on her old partner and walking towards the portal.

Right before the portal, Yang stops and without turning around says "If you want to be with me, this time, I won't stop you." Then she's stepping through the portal.

Blake looks pained, taking a step forward then stopping herself, holding her arms around her. "I'm sorry Yang, but I can't. I- this would be running again, and I said I'd stop. I can't follow you in that darkness."

Weiss doesn't think those words are for Yang, but more for Blake herself. The white haired girl is untouched but she feels pulled tremendously, as if she's being yanked on both arms, one side toward Blake and those who are staying, the other towards the portal and Yang. Her pale blue eyes catch Blake's yellow ones, and both of them open their mouths, but they can't seem to say anything, nothing feels right.

After a moment that feels like eternity, Weiss turns her head back to the portal and says "I should go, keep an eye on her." The ex-heiress feels like the words are a hollow excuse, even though she does truly mean them.

Blake nods, a sad but understanding smile on her face. "Go, I know you'll- you'll help reign her in from doing anything too crazy."

Weiss offers a similar smile back, as if they were just going on a mission together, not leaving to potentially never see each other again, though the tears starting to form in her eye bely that truth. "Of course. I- It was good to see you again" she says with complete sincerity. Weiss wipes her eyes and turns around, marching through the portal.

On the other side she sees Yang, looking anxiously at the portal. Behind her are the bandits that they had beaten and captured earlier that day (it felt like far more than a day, but really not that many hours had passed since then), with the tournament fighters standing far off to the side, slinking away. Well, the preppy girl and aloof noble dressed guy are slinking away, the one armed man is near dragging away the barely restrained enraged larger boy from the reclamation of the bandit camp.

The blond beauty seems surprised to see Weiss, but happy and hopeful. Weiss gets nearer to Yang and shakes her head. Yang scowls, but then quickly wipes it off her face to smile unabashedly at the smaller girl. "Whatever, I don't need her. Everything I need is right here."

Weiss wonders about that but can't find it in herself to say anything that would threaten her smile right now. The last few people, White Fang stragglers and students make their way onto this side of the portal, before Raven steps through it herself, the portal closing after her.

"Welcome, everyone, to the Branwen tribe!" A cheer tentatively starts from some of the assembled crowd, being picked up by others and then turned into a riotous uproar from the older members of the tribe, chanting Raven's name. Amidst all of it, Weiss can see Yang scanning the crowd, and sees her face start to drop. She turns to the bandit chief and asks "Where's Ruby?"

Ruby rushes down the mountain, racing through the streets without a care, pushing her Semblance and Aura as far as they can take her. They take her far, but even as driven as she is, Ruby can't maintain that pace forever, her Aura running out. Pyrrha's weight rests heavy in her arms, but she doesn't stop, she can't let herself rest, not when her partner's life is literally in her hands (she does her best not to focus on the blood that's red like roses, spilling out of Pyrrha, but she feels it's warmth on her hands, soaking through her clothes-).

The red reaper kicks in the door to the office "Dr. Gale, we need you!" She cries out.

The doctor comes out from the back room, looking to see what all the commotion is about. "You again! If your bird brained uncle got himself hurt again…" She stops her tirade as she see the red clad girl, and the woman she's carrying. "Is that- Pyrrha Nikos?" She breathes out, almost a whisper before shaking her head. "Nevermind, bring her here." It's a good thing that Doctor Gale steps forward as Ruby does, because the young girl's legs give out from under her, exhaustion completely taking hold as she manages to hoist Pyrrha onto the doctor's arms.

Ruby hears the doctor giving orders, having just enough strength left to clearly say "I'm not hurt, just Pyrrha- save her!" Before she drops to the floor fully letting herself slip into unconsciousness.

A/N: Alright, so that was the end of this arc. The end of my 'Volume 5', though as you may be able to tell, things diverge greatly enough here that events can't really be split up into 'volumes' past this point. I'm going to be going on hiatus after this, though don't worry, I still have an 'epilogue-like' chapter to wrap up some of the loose ends of this arc before I go on break

I also know that this chapter has a few characters acting… a tad controversially. I feel it makes sense given the circumstances, and what we saw of their responses in Volume 6, but please, let me know what you feel about it. If everything made sense or what didn't, both for this chapter and the arc/story as a whole. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated, thanks.


	39. Chapter 39 - Aftermath

Chapter 39 – Aftermath

The courtyard is silent in the wake of Raven departure, Hazel, Adam, and the rest of the White Fang having left on the Bulkhead already.

"Do we uh, take off our masks too?" One of the former White Fang members breaks the silence before covering her mouth as she sees the student hunters and huntresses glaring at her.

"Yes, take off your masks, and once you get a change of clothes discard the uniforms too" Blake says.

Arslan stomps angrily "What? Are we just supposed to trust these terrorists now?"

Sun steps in the middle "Whoa, whoa, let's not start another fight."

"Like they did by attacking our school?" She retorts.

The monkey faunus holds up his hands "Ok, fair point, but counterpoints – they were forced to do so by a psycho who would kill anyone who tried to leave, and now they're here to help. And we could use all the help we can get." Those somber words settle in on everyone as they realize what's coming next. The Grimm. Already the students are casting their eyes to the horizon, as if they already expected a tide of darkness to be gathering.

The former White Fang members drop their masks and the girl who asked before, speaks up again (mostly at the prodding of the others to make her their spokesperson) "What- What can we do to help?"

"Great question" Sun says with more enthusiasm than he must be feeling. "Answer: Everything" he moves his hands out in a large crescent like a rainbow as he says the word. "We have uh, prisoners that need detaining, like that guy" he points at Dr. Watts, still encased in ice. Ren and Nora aren't standing nearby him. Nora actually seems to be standing away from Ren, with her arms crossed, pointedly looking away from him, which Blake would find incredibly disturbing if today didn't seem to be bizzaro day where everything worked the opposite of how she expected it.

"We can get started on setting up communications from Lionheart's office, and working with the Rangers to set up a defensive perimeter for any threats coming our way!" Neptune offers and people perk up at defined action plans, or at least goals, on what to do next.

Blake moves over to Ilia's side "Sorry Ilia, this wasn't quite the rousing success I had hoped it would be." The chameleon faunus shrugs as best she can.

"We defeated Adam and weakened the White Fang (even if they ran away), we'll be doing something good hear. I don't think anyone could have predicted… whatever that was." She pauses for a moment, a brief flash of blue on the spots on her cheeks the only indication as to something troubling her.

"What's wrong?"

"Are they right about me? About us? I want to change how I'm doing things but- I'm not like you."

Blake snorts a bit at that. "Sorry, but how can that be true?" She grabs Ilia's hand "I've done just as many wrong things as you have. I decided to turn things around, to find a better way to help. No matter the circumstances, you're doing that too."

"I guess" she says, but a small smile appears on her face as she does so, so Blake's glad. "What now? Follow Sun and his blue haired friend?"

"Maybe in a bit. I get the feeling I really need to catch up, and hey, I can introduce you to my friends."

"Yay." Ilia says flatly, not looking super enthused, but she let's herself get dragged over to Ren and Nora, so she probably doesn't hate it too much. Behind them she can see some hunters moving to chip off the ice encasing the older mustached man and drag him away (any sympathy Blake might feel for him vanishes when he tries to bribe the huntsmen taking him away with 'a spot in Salem's world' – she may have seen far less of Salem than Ozpin in those visions but what she did see creeped her out, plus she had Adam working for her so that wasn't a good sign).

"Hey Ren, hey Nora. Been a while?" Blake tentatively offers to them. They look at her awkwardly for a moment before both begin to speak up

"Hello Blake-" "Nice save with the cavalry Blake-" They both cut off their words as the other one talks.

"Am I… interrupting something?" More silence, glares from Nora at Ren, and the Mistrallian boy looking away, not guilty, but not comfortable either (it's hard for her to get a read on him. The cat faunus clears her throat. "Well, I'm glad I could help. We meant to get more aid from Menagerie, but we had to move quickly when we heard about the attack. Oh, and this is my friend, Ilia." She pushed the girl forward, getting a quick look of 'betrayal' from her before Ilia put on a smile to greet the two of them.

"Hi, I'm Blake's friend from, well, it's been quite a while. I, uh, met with her and Sun in Menagerie and now we're here, and honestly I'm a little lost."

"It has been, hasn't it?" Ren says, holding his hand out. "I'm Ren, nice to meet you." He shakes her hand. "Are you a huntress as well? I didn't know that Menagerie had an academy." At the look on her face he adds "Sorry if I'm assuming, I just saw your weapon and it looks very advanced."

"Oh, thanks. And no, Menagerie doesn't have a huntsman Academy. I actually grew up in Mantle." Blake can see her friend freeze up, as if just considering leaving it there, letting them make their own assumptions about her training before she forces out "But that's not where I trained, I used to be a member of the White Fang! Blake helped show me that- That what we were doing wasn't right. It didn't matter the results we got, the measures we were taking…"

"Hmmm" Nora says, closely inspecting Ilia, prodding her slightly (even poking the air above her head, like where Blake's cat ears are) and looking at her clothing. "You don't look like a White Fang member" she says suspiciously.

"That's because I infiltrate- I used to infiltrate places" she says, demonstrating her faunus traits by causing her skin to go all black, matching her stealth outfit. "It's stealthier at night" she adds when she realizes how much more noticeable it makes her in the sunset's light.

"I can see how that would be useful" Ren says, with an eye for stealth himself. "It's good to have you on our side.

"Ohhh, so cool, can you make yourself all pink? I guess not because if you could why wouldn't you be pink right now after all you agree that pink is the best color right-"

Ilia shares a brief chuckle with Blake before she spots the young farm-ish looking boy stumbling out of the school, seeming dazed. "Another one of you're friends?"

"No, I've never met him before." Blake looks questioningly at Nora and Ren, surprised by the amount of vitrol that appeared on their faces at her bringing him up. "Is he a… bad guy… then." Her voice falters as she catches the sight of his cane.

"That, is Ozpin" Ren practically growls out.

That boy is Ozpin? Even seeing the cane and being told that, Blake finds it hard to believe. He wanders over to them. "Um, hello everyone, I-"

"What was that about 'no more secrets' Ozjerk?!" Nora angrily demands.

He holds up his hands placatingly (and possibly a bit scared of an angry Nora) "Look, I get that Ozpin kept a lot of secrets, even I didn't know any of this stuff."

Ren sighs "I'm sympathetic with your position Oscar, but right now we need to have some words with Ozpin, can you bring him out?"

"No" he refuses, then hastily adds "It's not that I don't want to, I do want to learn more, but it's like he retreated within me. After the vision, I couldn't reach him."

"Wait, aren't you Ozpin?" Ilia asks, confused.

"Oscar is the boy who Ozpin's soul joined with after the Battle of Beacon."

At Ren's words, Blake's eyes light up "Like the man with Two Souls!" She blurts out before she can stop herself. To her shock, Oscar perks up at that.

"Yeah, actually Ozpin, or uh, Ozma I guess, wrote that book several lifetimes ago. It was both of them at the time trying to explain their feelings, the process in which they came to live with each other…" At the questioning looks of Ren and Nora he explains "He told me about it last night, he had mentioned it when talking with Pyrrha."

"Oscar, you seem to be the only one left who saw what went on in there. Can you fill us in?" Ren asks, just sounding tired by this point.

"Uh, yeah, I remember most of that." He explains how the fight went on, Ruby coming through the portal and needing the knowledge to use the Relic in exchange for saving Pyrrha's life… and how Oscar wrested the knowledge from Ozpin (something that he can't seem to do anymore with how much Ozpin has retreated, or possibly the wizard is just more prepared for it now) and gave it to Ruby. The red cloaked girl went back through the portal which disappeared for a bit, then reappeared with Raven, Vernal, and Jinn (the name of the glowing blue woman Blake caught a brief glimpse of through the wrecked walls that disappeared, turning back into the lantern apparently). "… I haven't seen Ruby or Pyrrha yet, but Raven said Ruby was running to get her medical help. I don't- I don't think she'd be lying about that, if only because that might alienate Qrow and Yang."

"Oscar" Nora says quite intently.

"Uh, yes?" He asks before the sound that can only be a Nora hug (bones creaking mixed with a few tears) reaches Blake's ears.

"Thank you. I- I don't know what I'd do if we lost another teammate. After Jaune- well you saved her, so thank you so much" Nora says with a heavy voice

Ren places a hand on both of their shoulders "You couldn't have known what could happen from revealing that knowledge, but there's no putting it back-" Nora glares at him but he continues undaunted. "-And it might be selfish, but I wouldn't want that either. I'm so glad that Pyrrha's alive." Nora's glare softens and she turns her head away from him, still obviously not pleased with him, but not making any motions to remove his hand.

"Thank you, both of you. You might be the only people in the kingdom to appreciate me right now though. Also, if you could, let me get a bit of air, now." Nora lets him go and gives the boy a sheepish grin. He returns it and they start walking towards where the Mistrallian students are.

Blake's heart lifts a bit at the mention of the young red clad huntress being alright. She hasn't seen the girl since she got here, so hearing that her team leader (if team RWBY can even be called a thing still) is alright is good. Her feelings drop back down when Oscar mentions Yang, and she remembers how her partner left. "Yang…"

A nudge to her shoulder snaps her out of her thoughts. "We'll get her back. You helped show me the right path afterall, I'm sure you'll reach Yang too" Ilia reassures her.

"Yeah, thanks." She squeezes Ilia's hand before they move to the other hunters and get started in helping out efforts to defend the kingdom, arrange council meetings, and try to handle panic. Night is coming on fast, something that Blake feels is an apt metaphor for their situation, but looking out all of her friends, Nora, Ren & Oscar, Sun & Neptune, Ilia by her side, and Ruby & Pyrrha just waiting to meet them again… she can have hope in the bright dawn that she knows will follow this darkest hour.

"I can't." The words are simple, almost off to the side of her mouth, as Raven addresses the question Yang raised when she was enthusing the tribe, but they hit the golden-haired young woman like a sledgehammer to the guts.

"What do you mean you-"

"Qrow, I need a moment" The bandit leader hurriedly says, not letting the discomfort in her low tone show on her face. She turns back to the crowd, continuing her speech and giving them orders. "Good! You'll need that enthusiasm as we push back Salem's and Ozpin's minions, as we claim what's ours. Lives free of magical overlords!" Another cheer goes up. "Alright, now we need to get on the move – Liquorice, River, you two go and show some of our new family members where our food stores are and gather up as much as we can. Vernal, you're on pulling up camp or what's left of it…" Raven's voice trailed off in Yang's ears as her uncle dragged her away.

"C'mon firecracker, your eyes are getting red and I think you need to calm down there." He takes her off the edge of camp, where the trees are still burnt black and smouldering before she shakes off his hand on her shoulder.

"Why?" She asks, still angry and irritated, but she can see her eyes flash back to purple as she gets a grip on her anger. "Don't you care about Ruby?"

Qrow crosses his arms, unimpressed. "Of course I do. I just know how to look at the bigger picture; right now we can't reach Ruby."

"What are you taking about? We just go over and-"

"How? How will we just 'get over there' without any airships?"

"Or any supplies" Raven adds in smoothly, done with giving orders to the camp. "Thank you brother, I can explain things from here."

"Gotcha. I suppose we can see how rusty my skills have gotten at moving camp about" he says, claping her shoulder as he walks by.

"Think of it like riding a bicycle." Yang sees Raven's lip turn upwards at the jab, and her uncle flip her off as he continues to walk away (a fact that only makes Raven's smile widen, even though she should have no way of seeing behind her to notice that).

"When will you lay off on that? It was over thirty years ago" he grouses, but Yang's been around her uncle long enough to tell when his grumbles are real or not, and this one definitely doesn't have any heart in it.

"Not in a million years, brother" she says before turning to face Yang. "So, you're worried about Ruby."

"Yeah. Are we going after her – I get it might take a few days to get to Mistral, but…"

"We're going to Quan Shen first. Then Tellandrin, then-"

"That's going the opposite way, away from Mistral!"

"No, we're looping around to Mistral. The route is longer, but we will eventually arrive at Mistral's doorstep – once we are armed, prepared, fed." She pauses for a moment and lets out a long sigh "There's a reason why I left you with your father when I left to take over the camp." The Spring Maiden turns around to look out at her tribe members, moving through taking down the camp, the older members showing the former White Fang members and Hunter Students how to move the camp.

"Life out in the wilds can be dangerous, to say nothing of uncomfortable. Disease, famine, Grimm attacks, there can be many dangers. I love my tribe, but it isn't the best place to raise a child – Qrow and I can attest to that."

"Really selling that 'bandit life'. So that's why you're so screwed up? Blame it on a bad childhood?" Yang is… less than satisfied with that answer to say the least, considering what her childhood had been like when Raven left.

"No, that's not what I- forget it." She casts a critical eye back on Yang. "You'll need to show more respect, at least in public" she adds, holding up a hand to stop the predictable tirade from her daughter. "You're to be my heir, so the camp will need to accepting my decisions, to keep order even if you have different thoughts you must air later."

The bandit leader turns back fully to Yang while she's still trying to digest that statement. "Your attack wiped out most of our camp, including our supplies. I'll be surprised if more than a tenth of what we had before it. To say nothing of our numbers tripling or perhaps quadrupling in size."

Any retort dies on the blonde's lips. Those are some good points as to why they can't just go straight to Ruby. "And you're Semblance couldn't…?"

Raven shakes her head, killing that faint, hopeful idea. "No, I've been stretched thin Aura-wise from the repeated battles and evacuating everyone here. And even if I did, I'd need a close bond to someone in the city, and everyone I'm close to is right here. I'm fond of Summer's daughter, but that's not enough to make a connection for my Semblance."

The yellow brawler let's out a sigh and her shoulders slump until a hand is placed on them. "Yang." She turns her head up to look into her mother's eyes. "I don't have the same connection you have to your sister, so when it comes time to convince her to join our side, you'll need to be the one to convince her."

Yang turns her head quizzically to the side. "Huh?"

"Ruby didn't see what we saw. Even if she's told about it after the fact, Ozpin will have free reign to manipulate her, to sway her to his side as he 'presents the facts'-" Raven says with actual air quotes, her eyes rolling in disbelief in that statement ever being used to describe what he does (a sentiment Yang can agree with). "To convince Ruby to stay with him. She'll just see me as an enemy, so when we march on Mistral, you'll need to be the one to convince her to walk away."

The reality of the situation hits Yang; Ruby will still be caught up in Ozpin's games unless she can save her! Her mother gently squeezes her shoulder. "I know how frustrating it must be to wait, but you can use this time to prepare. Find the perfect words to sway her, I know you can do this, my daughter."

The bandit heir nods her head slowly "Yeah. Thanks."

Raven smiles "You're welcome. Now, I need to oversee the rest of the tribe and your Schnee girlfriend seems to be waving at you."

Yang splutters for a moment before looking over at Weiss, waving her over in a wary stance, opposite from a grey figure- "Mercury" she growls out as she runs over to them.

"Oh, hey Blondie, good to see you here too" Mercury says as he sees her stalking over to them. He sounds unconcerned but considering he subtly shifted his stance to face both of them and backed up a bit, Yang thinks he's more nervous than he lets on. As he should be.

"What are you doing here? Think you can spy on us for Salem-"

Mercury raises his hands up, palms open. "Hold on, I quit Salem's side just like those White Fang guys did, something I've been trying to tell your teammate here" he says, jerking his head towards Weiss.

"A likely story" the girl in white scoffs, her hand on her rapier at her side. "Why should we ever trust you again, after what you pulled at Beacon?"

"And even if we could, how can we trust anyone who could switch sides so easily? Those ex-White Fang goons didn't know anything about Salem, they were hardly inner circle members."

"Ugh, that was just a job, and it isn't like you'll be caught off guard now. Also, I am well and done with pretending to be a goody two shoes, no more of that thanks." He sticks out his tongue, as if the thought of the effort he had to put in to betray them (not the act of stabbing them and the school in the back or anything like that) put a bad taste in his mouth. He drops his hands and takes on a more serious expression for Yang's question.

"Look, me and Ems were hardly 'inner circle', we just got to tag along when Cinder sat at the big table. Which doesn't mean I don't know a few… useful tidbits to help the tribe, cause I might have a thing or two stored up here" the silver haired bastard says, tapping the side of his head with a smirk on his face. The smirk drops as he continues "So I was Cinder's man, not Salem's (though I suspect she'd have some harsh words for us after our failure at Haven, which is why is part of why I decided to get out while the going's good). I owed Cinder, she saved my life, and hey, the pay was good. So I fought for her, up till the end, you saw that, but there's no point in me wasting my time trying to help a corpse. Cinder's gone and Raven's stronger, so I'm part of the tribe now. That good enough for you two?"

Yang and Weiss glare at him in silence, sharing the feeling that it isn't enough, but not sure what else to demand from him. He takes that moment of silence as acceptance "Well, if that will be all, I've got some tents to move." He places his hands behind the back of his head as he slowly backsteps away.

"We'll be keeping an eye on you" Weiss says, stilling glaring daggers at him.

Mercury laughs and glances down at himself. "With a body like mine? Who wouldn't?" He says before spinning around and swaggering off.

Yang rolls her eyes "Urgh." She sends a smile Weiss' way before placing her arm over her shoulder. "I guess we better help the others move. The faster this goes, the sooner we can get to Ruby."

"Right…" the smaller girl says, obviously worried.

"Hey, don't worry about it. We just have to focus on convincing her to join us when the time comes and then everything will be… golden" she whips her hair forward a bit, the locks cascading down on the ex-Schnee heiress, causing her to sputter a bit and mock glare at Yang (something the blonde considers to be far better than the distressed look she had on her face a moment ago).

"You've been saving that pun up for some time, haven't you?"

Yang just laughs in response, and Weiss sighs, flipping the long hair out of her face, but also putting her arm around Yang's side as well. Her touch is cool, but it feels good, like this. The start of something new.

The battleworn woman stopped in the middle of the alleyway, only a few blocks before the faunus district that held her apartment (technically just a 'poorer' district of Mistral, but this one 'just happened' to house most of the faunus nearby – they may not be enslaved any more, but that didn't mean those with power couldn't still make the lives of most faunus… uncomfortable through subtle means). She hadn't noticed it when she had moved through the busier sections of Mistral as she raced to her family, but here, where it was quiet, she hears steps that she realizes have been dogging her for some time.

Whirling around Mary flexes out her claws and says "Show yourself!" There's silence for a moment before Umber steps forward from the entrance to the alleyway.

"Whoa, calm down Mary" he says with his hands held placatingly in front of him as he stepped closer to her. "I was worried when you rushed out from Haven, I just followed to make sure you were alright." His worried expression is perfect, he has the right tone, there isn't a hint of any deception in his eyes… Mary's almost convinced, but she knows better than to trust him.

"Not another step!" Umber halts, looking as if he's confused. "I'm just going to check on my family, and I don't need any help from you."

"Are you sure? With all the craziness-" he takes another step forward and Mary shifts into a battle ready stance.

"All the craziness, yet I don't doubt for a second that you heard my words to Raven. Back off Umber, just let me take my family and go. This doesn't have to be a fight."

Umber shrugs "I'd say 'you caught me', but really it's the other way around, isn't it? And I disagree about us not needing to fight." His spear and net appear in his hands in a blur that Mary almost misses, and she shifts back a step involuntarily at the demonstration of his speed. "We will need to fight, if you go, take your family and join the Branwen tribe. Sooner or later you will be Pyrrha and mine's enemy, and while we may have never clashed in the ring, I've seen your skills today, and respect you too much to let an enemy like you slip away."

"You're so worried I'd be a threat to your 'precious Pyrrha'?" Mary said mockingly, fluttering her eyelashes at him. She hoped to draw out his anger, to get him to make a mistake in anger, but all the comment gets is him drawing his lips in a hard line. "She's way too strong for me to ever manage it – hell after that light show, I don't think even you'd slow her down. So why bother with this?"

"Because, while today was a good example of how powerful some people are, foes and allies on every side, it also showed us that fighters like you and I can make a difference. Even if it's holding off a few enemies in the middle of a brawl, that can make the difference between life and death."

"And you think that's going to make her fall for you?" Mary mocked swooning "Oh, my saviour, you took out a few minions on my left side, now let's get married! Is that how you think it goes?"

He chuckled softly, a sound that unnerved the wolverine faunus greatly. "Who knows what the future may hold? Even if my feelings are never reciprocated, I shall forever serve her, as she deserves to be held up. Pyrrha is our light, the hope of Mistral-"

"You're disgusting" Mary spits out. Before the spittle has hit the ground, Umber is rushing her, blasting down the alley in the blink of an eye.

"Unlike a mongrel like you! Your future is known" he shouts out as his spear jabs in a flurry of blows, barely deflected by her arms, several more created with her Semblance. "And it will be your death!" Umber continues as he breaks apart some her soul made arms, the blows just slipping past her defence as she tries to back up.

The tournament fighter strikes up at her head, which Mary slips her head to the side from and tries to pummel him, only for her many arms to be met and caught by his dust net. Umber flicks his hand, using the bottom of his spear to hook through and pull his net up, freeing his net hand to punch her twice in the gut, almost causing her to bowl over. All of that done smoothly, in the span of a second.

Mary lets go of her Semblance made arms to call upon a new one to catch his hook to her chin in the nick of time, but before she can congratulate herself on that, Umber's right leg sweeps out, taking out her feet. His cold eyes glare down at her as she falls, tumbling backwards.

She makes a mad scramble upward, using the limbs to get herself up and running fast, hoping to make some distance between her and this maniac when she sees him poised to throw his spear at her. She turns, ready to block it as he looses it from his grip, arms forming to shield herself and catch it out of the air- only for Umber to snag it, catching it with his net and whipping it up and downward, triggering a fire mechanism that rockets the spear down even faster. It bypasses her guard and pierces her heart before she can stop it.

As everything fades in her eyes, Mary realizes that that move must have been made by copying Pyrrha – copying the Semblance that no one else knew she had today before she started flinging her weapons around. Umber had already decoded it from who knows how much research and built his fighting style to copy the Mistrallian champion's. Mary might have been about to turn her back on the girl and join up with bandits, but she worries for her, and what Pyrrha's life will be like with people like Umber at her side.

More than that though, she worries about her family, about who will take care of them… how will they… without… her…

Umber yanks his spear out from her. "When I said you were 'a mongrel' that was because you were turning your back on Mistral, not because- I didn't mean it because you were a faunus! I just- I should really stop talking to a corpse" he says, cleaning his weapon off on her clothes. The teenager sighs before looking up, at the side of the mountain, his gaze sliding all the way to the peak.

'Mistral represents our past glories and our hopes for the future.' It's a line he's studied often and something he couldn't agree more with Pyrrha on. Umber suspects that she doesn't see herself as the saviour she's meant to be of Mistral, but he knows in time that she will. And he'll help her, and in doing so they will lift up all of Mistral from these dark times. Umber glances over at Mary's corpse before turning back to the way out of the alleyway. No matter what needs to be done, Umber vows to see to Pyrrha's protection. With that thought in mind he steps out of the shadowy alleyway, and back into the bright city streets.

He crawls out the wreckage of the Bullhead, gasping for breath from the exertion and the pain the crash had caused him. But he was alive! Lionheart triumphantly thought as he pulled himself up.

Let others call him a coward, he was just smart – his Dust Dueling Disk cost him little Aura and kept him safe and away from angry heiresses and their pointy swords, to say nothing of the rest of the brawl that had gone on. His Aura took a heavy hit from the crash, but because no one else had hit him before that, he was able to make it through.

Lionheart shakes his head as he steps out of the wreckage, clearing his mind and focusing. The case! He realizes and begins trying to shift apart the wreckage, a difficult task for a regular person, but his decades of experience as a huntsmen plus the modicum of Aura he has left allow him to sift through the metal airship scraps and find it. The case is busted, the scroll inside it is cracked, and most of the files and money he packed are ruined, or at least damaged in some way.

Before he gives into despair, he checks the side pouch and sees that the flash drive, while dirtied, is still there and whole. He lets out a sigh of relief as he realizes he'll have some money from his accounts. Lionheart stretches his old shoulders out as he begins to make his way down the mountain, finding a safehouse.

The safehouse was made for many of his hunters, a general purpose restplace almost, not like the facility that Qrow was using (even he didn't know where all of the Ozpin safehouses were in even Mistral, let alone the rest of the world). Hacking security systems wasn't something Leonard had ever focused on, but seeing as he set this site up himself, taking it down was easy… just like he had taken down the Hunters of Mistral, he thought to himself as the empty and dusty house opened up to him.

Leo regretted it, he did, truly! But with Salem's hold, how could he have done otherwise? He shakes away those doubts and regrets, no matter what, it was all over now. The hunters had seen his 'death' and he could slip away. Where to go though? He has some options, a bit of cash, but not everything he'd need. His fake IDs and the like had been ruined so he'd need some new ones made fast, which would eat into his already lessened funds. Those were problems for future Lionheart, however, so Leo went inside, locked and alarmed the building and crashed on one of the beds, ready for a bright new (free! Free of Ozpin and Salem's bullshit!) life in the morning.

Come the next day, Leonard Lionheart got up, dressed himself in many layers, a scarf, hiding his tail, and sunglasses to disguise himself (he wasn't the most famous person around Mistral by any stretch of the imagination, but Headmasters of hunter schools did tend to gather some renown), and went out to Mistral. The city – it alternated between incredibly noisy and deathly quiet. One person is standing on a bow, proclaiming how these are 'the end times' – not altogether uncommon but what is, is how many people are chanting alongside him and listening.

Thoroughly confused, Lionheart ventures to ask one of the people gathered at the side "What is this all about?"

The man he asked is in a mechanist outfit, looking to be in his mid thirties with dark blue hair. "Have you been under a rock old timer? The word is there's a 'mistress of evil', Salemi? And she's controlling all the Grimm and we're all doomed."

"Salem?!" Leo gasps, unable to help himself. How could everyone know?

"Ah yeah you have heard. There's other stuff about a wizard and magic, I don't really know about that, but everything seems pretty doom and gloomy, with bandits gathering outside the city and everyone upset here" the man gestures to the fearful crowd. "I'd imagine the Grimm will be coming here soon."

It takes Lionheart a moment to respond, trying to process all of that "I, I must be going now, thank you for your time." He rushed off, trying to find a bank that would take his flashdrive and be willing to cash out the account information he had stored on there, but finds all of the banks to be full up from other people trying to get their Lien and leave. A councilwoman trying to maintain the order of the place almost catches him, so Leo quickly retreats.

He needs money, but he's out of options to get it from… from Mistral. These accounts have funds that could be taken in other places. If he gets to Argus fast enough, and from there to Mantle… A plan forms in his head, and a quick meeting with a displeased and scared Bullhead driver has him up and in the air, offering his services guarding the vessel as he gets a ride out of the city.

As he looks back on the mountain, fading out of sight, he wonders briefly what will happen to the city he once protected. Is it doomed to fall to Salem and her minions? Would Oz have protected him if…? The thoughts plague him for a moment before he locks them away within a box in his mind. He's alive, and while Atlas may not be the sunny, well guarded, beach he had hoped to retire on, he knows he'll be safe there, and that matters more than any friendship, or accolades of duty, or even how history will remember him.

Oscar gently nudges the young girl in red. She's half sitting in a chair, half lying on the bed the taller girl is lying in and breathing shallowly on (too shallowly – Oscar almost thought that Pyrrha had passed when he first entered the room, wondering if wresting the knowledge of Jinn's name from Ozpin was all for naught at first, before he realized she was alive, if just barely). "Hey Ruby" he says as the little red reaper blearily opens her eyes.

"Oscar" she says with a smile as she hazily recognizes him, before her silver eyes snap into focus on her partner, still lying there, still… alive. Ruby lets out a quiet breath and Oscar recognizes the relief in it.

They wait in silence for a moment before Ruby asks "How did it go?"

"We, uh, well, no one died." Ruby beams at that, before seeing the look on his face.

"Then… what did happen? Did Raven get away with the Relic?"

Oscar thought for a moment, leaning on the cane as he stood beside them. He double checked to make sure the room was empty save for them. "She got away, yeah. Raven – Raven used the Relic and asked a question, and we all got the answer to it, thanks to Jinn. She asked about all of Oz's mistakes." Ruby's face falls at that, recognition sparking. "Did you- know?" It's impossible, and yet, given her reaction…

Ruby shakes her head "I don't know the details, but I remember Ozpin giving me advice one time, when I felt like I wasn't a good team leader. I wondered… if he had made a mistake making me team leader, and he said that 'he had made more mistakes then any man, woman, or child alive', but he didn't think making me team leader was one of those. With the fact that he's a reincarnated wizard, what he said then makes a lot more sense."

"He… made a lot of mistakes, that's true. Possibly the only true thing about him. Jinn didn't just answer the question, she showed it all to us, how Ozpin- no, 'Ozma' in the beginning was given a mission by the God of Light to protect the Relics until such time as the world was united. Ozma decided to marry Salem instead and stayed with her, at least for long enough to have some kids. When he tried to leave…" Oscar begins explaining the whole thing to her, covering the 'highlights' of what mistakes Ozma had made over his many lives.

"And then the visions stopped. It wasn't just myself, Qrow, and Yang that were shown the vision as well- everyone saw it, all the White Fang and hunter students too-"

"Wait a minute! When did the White Fang get involved?!"

"Oh, right, I guess you left before that. After Lionheart was taken down by Weiss-"

"What?" Ruby interrupts again.

"Ok, so you missed a fair bit. To recap, just as we were convincing the students to stop attacking us, Lionheart tricked them, then tried to flee. Weiss stopped him and took down his ship, sending it crashing away. Then – actually I think you came back and gave Ozpin your Uncle, then the White Fang showed up, along with a large human, called Hazel. I think Ozpin has some sort of history with him? Oz didn't tell me a bunch when we were fighting beyond the fact that he thinks Oz caused the death of his sister (I think I saw a bit of it in a vision, he was on a team in Beacon and Oz received word that someone called Gretle had died). He was working with the White Fang, probably because they're working with Salem-"

"What." This time Ruby's voice is flat, slightly exasperated with all these new details. Oscar scratches the back of his head.

"Okay, that point hadn't been revealed yet, I'll get to it. Anyways, Hazel was really tough, he stabbed these huge Dust Crystals into his arms to boost himself, apparently he has a Semblance to shut out the pain. We fought him off while the students were fighting off the White Fang. Then your friend Blake arrived with a couple of her friends to help us." Ruby does her best not to interrupt again, to hear everything first, but her whole face brightens up at the mention of Blake's name.

"Blake, Ilia, and Sun fought Adam, the leader of the White Fang, they beat him while we were fighting Hazel. I got drawn to where Qrow was and Raven arrived, talked to us for a bit before asking her question. Then the fighting stopped as everyone freaked out and tried to figure out what was going on."

"Ok, I think I get all that now. So that- that isn't good. Everyone's going to know about Salem, who is apparently immortal, but no one died right?" Her face is so hopeful that Oscar's heart feels like breaking when he continues.

"Nobody died, but… Adam, Hazel and some of his White Fang ran away, going back to Salem, though not all the White Fang agreed with him. Raven made a speech about how she was going to make her tribe safe from Salem and Ozma, and a lot of people joined her. White Fang, some students,… and Qrow, Weiss, and Yang."

"Why? Why would she do that? Yang knows her mother is a bandit, she- actions like Raven's are what cause villages to be destroyed by the Grimm, I've seen it!"

"I guess that family means more than that to her." As soon as Oscar says that he realizes that he's said something wrong, looking at those hurt Silver Eyes as she thinks about how Yang left her. "Uh, and she was really hurt by finding out Ozpin was still hiding stuff from everyone" Oscar quickly adds on. "She mi- she's probably just acting out in the moment from how hurt she was."

"I have to save her" Ruby says, standing up suddenly. "I'll show her that Raven is wrong and-" Ruby takes two steps away from her chair and to the door before faltering, and Oscar rushes over to help keep her upright.

"Easy there, you're in no condition to go chasing after her. Also, we might have bigger problems heading our way. The Grimm."

"With all the chaos and negative emotions in Haven…"

"… the Grimm are gathering around Mistral, yeah" Oscar finishes. "The knowledge is seeping into the public too, and we're trying to control it, slow down everything, but the people are really worried too, which only draws in more Grimm."

"Do you guys need a hand setting up defences or fighting them off-" The farmboy holds up a hand, cutting off Ruby's offer.

"I appreciate it, but you still need to rest." His gaze trails over to Pyrrha "And I think we'd all be happier to know you were watching over Pyrrha right now. She's… incredible, and I'm not- I don't regret what I did, giving Jinn's name over to Raven, but I want to make sure that it meant actually saving her."

Ruby grabs his hand "We both made that choice, don't blame yourself. This is a lot to take in, but so long as we stick together we can make it through this."

"Thanks" Oscar says, and he feels his spirits rise. The words are simple, and everything still seems bleak, but he feels just a bit more inspired than before. Like they're true, and they can overcome all these disasters.

"Thank you, Ruby. And you're right, together we can stop the Grimm and from there- well I don't know, but we'll take things one step at a time. Blake convinced a lot of her former White Fang friends to turn a new leaf and help us- oh no, I forgot to mention, Blake was a member of the White Fang, and used to pretend to be a human, not a cat faunus!"

Ruby giggles a bit "Yeah, I already knew that." She says, as if it was obvious. Oscar crosses his arms and mock pouts.

"Well excuse me for not knowing you'd already had those revelations." They laugh for a moment, mostly just to ease the tensions they feel pressing all around them. "Don't worry, we've got help and we're organizing things up at Haven. You rest up, keep an eye on Pyrrha, and if we need you, we'll let you know." Oscar takes out a spare Scroll and passes it to her.

The young girl (whose still older than him, but just feels 'young' compared to her compatriats) hugs him "Stay safe. And call me when you need me, I'm serious."

"I will, don't worry" Oscar says, before walking out the door, heading back to the others. They've got a long night ahead of them.

Pyrrha opens her eyes and takes in a deep gasp of air as she tries to focus her thoughts on what happened. The last thing she remembered was Vernal hitting her and- the Fall Maiden takes in where she is and the teary girl standing beside her. "Ruby." Pyrrha finds herself enveloped in the younger girl's hug, something she wouldn't usually mind at all, but even with her partner being gentle, Pyrrha feels the pain, and fatigue, of their last battle suddenly come washing over her, and Ruby's soft embrace vanishes as she feels Pyrrha stiffen beneath her.

"Ruby, what happened?"

A/N: And here we are! The end of what I had planned out when I first started sketching out this fic. I have many more ideas planned for the future, how things might play out from here, but for now I'm going to take a bit of a break. There are the holidays coming up and a lot of other projects that I've pushed to the side that I really need to work on, but I want to thank everyone for reading this and coming with me thus far on this journey. I know that this was a bit of a twist towards the end, but I hope you've enjoyed it, all of it.

I'd also like to hear your thoughts on my story thus far, and what you're hoping for the future. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated as I try to improve myself as a writer. Finally, if there are any questions you have about everything that's gone on, any loose ends I've failed to tie up, please ask me about them now.


End file.
